The Lucky Ones
by QuasiOuster
Summary: With four residents and only three open spots, Neil is unable to prevent Claire's dismissal from the residency program at St. Bonaventure. How do they deal with a future neither of predicted? Neil's POV.
1. Chapter 1

_**Author's Note: Buckle up for a bit of a longer story-probably around ten-ish chapters. The bad news is that I'll have to post incrementally as I find the time to edit each chapter. But the good news is that the story is completely done so there shouldn't be too much of a wait.**_

 _ **I end up writing this type of story for almost every fandom I write for and they tend to be some of my favorites. Here, a story where the main characters are separated for a time is useful to get Claire and Neil on equal footing. I hope you enjoy and feedback is always welcome to help me get better writing for these characters.**_

 _ **And on a technical note, for clarity, anything in italics is a flashback with the rest being present day.**_

* * *

 **Chapter One**

 _Neil called Claire that night after she'd been dismissed from the program. It didn't seem right not to reach out to her._

 _He waited until he got home of course, the risk of interruption or distraction too high at the hospital. Knowing what he had to do, he headed straight to his minibar for a healthy pour of bourbon after dropping his briefcase on his kitchen island. Droplets of moisture dotted his blazer from his sprint to the front door to avoid the worst of the sudden downpour. Allowing himself a few sips, he stripped the now too tight jacket off, a languid tangle of limbs and material that he tossed on the back of the couch. He watched the rain slam into the window as it started to come down harder and thunder cracked in the distance._

 _The ominous mood seemed appropriate. Yet he couldn't imagine what it must feel like to Claire right now._

 _He stalled for about half an hour, just sitting on the couch, until finally pulling out his phone to stare at it for another five minutes. Neil willed himself to pull her number from his contacts and connected the call before he could convince himself she'd be better off not hearing from him; the moment too raw for him to be of any comfort. It felt like no amount of time or reflection could help him justify what had happened._ _As the phone rang, he agonized over how to string together the words that would make the situation alright despite knowing that those platitudes did not exist. He feared she wouldn't answer the phone, maybe too upset or bitter to talk to anyone, especially him. It's not like he could blame her._

 _She'd answered on the third ring, enough time for her to have considered and reconsidered whether her attending—her former attending—was someone she could face at the moment. It relieved him and unnerved him at the same time._

 _As they talked, she'd been gracious. Sad. There were the apologies, certainly; then an acceptance of his apology. Next came assurances that she'd be okay and that he thought so highly of her despite the setback._

" _I wasn't sure you'd answer," Neil admitted finally. "Maybe you wouldn't be home or …" He couldn't quite open the door to her confirming that she may not have wanted to talk to him._

" _Park and a couple of the nurses texted about getting a drink, but I don't think I'm up for that tonight," Claire chuckled humorlessly._

" _Yeah." A lame response, even to him. He realized all of this was just dancing around what he really wanted to tell her: that he didn't want any of this. And Claire being Claire, she beat him to it._

" _I know this wasn't you. It's fine. Really."_

 _Neil ran his fingers through his hair, taken aback. "How…"_

" _Your eye twitches when you're pissed," she explained, amused._

 _Neil smiled into the phone. "Well, I guess you'd know all about that."_

 _The sincerity of her laugh made him feel a little better about the situation and that she would be okay._

" _What is it you like to say? 'At least I won't have you breathing down my neck.'"_

" _There is that," he responded sadly. "Claire. I…" The rights words failed him. What could he possibly do to make things better? He settled on the only thing he thought he could do. "I'll make some calls tomorrow. Just tell me what you want."_

 _Claire sighed on the other end of the line. "Thank you. Really. Actually, Dr. Glassman got me some meetings in San Diego. At Presbyterian and Downtown Memorial. So, I'm packing now to take the first flight out tomorrow morning."_

 _The blow of that made Neil sink down into the couch in defeat. He'd held out hope that he could play one last role as her mentor, go over options and make the calls to bridge this experience to the next. Staying in San Jose may have been too much to ask for, but he'd been thinking other parts of the Bay Area or maybe even Sacramento. That Aaron beat him to that stung. And those two hospitals weren't ones he'd have picked for her, both being more research focused than beacons of surgical excellence. Not that they were bad, far from it—they were excellent hospitals with competitive residency programs. Mostly he thought them so different from what she had here._

 _It seems she'd turned out to be the quicker of them to adjust. And it bummed him out._

 _Maybe sensing this somehow, she quickly added, "I'm hoping you'll be able to give them a good recommendation of what I can do and what I'm capable of."_

" _Claire, don't ever worry about that," he assured her._

" _Good," she replied. "I'll expect to hear all about your gushing over my brilliance then?"_

 _Neil chuckled. "Of course." It felt nice that she was willing to indulge in their running joke about him admitting to her brilliance._

 _Once in the first year of her residency, right after Reznick joined his rotation and he'd seen the cracks in her confidence showing, he'd let slip how highly he regarded her; that he thought her unique and special. On his way home, he'd second-guessed himself, wondering if he made a mistake to be that candid about her potential—maybe she'd take it the wrong way or rest on her laurels. And then he remembered that this was Claire Browne he was talking about, one of the most forthright people he'd ever worked with. That helped him laugh it off and, of course, he'd had nothing to worry about. And most importantly, he'd meant every word. Still did._

 _Claire's loud exhale broke into his old memory before dying away in the silence between them. She cleared her throat, as if stalling for something to say. "This actually gives me time to do some other stuff I've been thinking about. With everything going on at the border, they still need doctors. I emailed some people this afternoon and I think I'll be able to do a rotation there while I'm waiting to hear back from other programs. If San Diego works out, I can find an apartment and get settled before I start."_

 _That sounded like Claire Browne alright. Always taking care of other people. "Sounds practical."_

 _Another awkward pause. Their time was coming up short. The finality of it felt all wrong and painful in a way that surprised him. He could tell himself that she was just another resident, one of dozens he'd had before and many that would come after. Maybe it would quiet the guilt. And yet, the lie in that warred with the undeniable truth that he missed her already._

" _I'll email you when I have a final placement. And I'll remember what you said. No waiting for it." That she'd been thinking of the same memory he'd only moments before recalled shattered him. "Thanks again. For everything."_

 _Neil sighed. "I mean it. If you need anything—"_

" _I'll ask," she assured him. "I should go, though. I still need to pack."_

 _Neil tried to think of something else to say, a way to linger. As if that would make things right. Instead, the only option left to him was to let her go. "I'll leave you to it then."_

 _They said their goodbyes. Soon after she was gone for good._

 _TBC..._


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two**

"I'll catch up with you later, Melendez."

Neil wished Dr. Williams good luck as the they parted, Neil to get a drink at the bar and his old med school friend to save his husband, also a doctor, from what looked like a painful conversation with an over-eager young surgeon. He scanned the crowded reception taking mental note of who he needed to talk to next—and who he needed to avoid. He'd been to this conference many times over the years, usually with other surgeons from St. Bonaventure, although none had come with him this year. They were short-staffed and most of his colleagues were holding out for the big international conference in Hawaii rather than slumming it in San Diego with the usual crowd.

The flight from San Jose got him to the conference earlier than expected that morning, which Neil appreciated since it gave him a chance to settle in at the overflow boutique hotel close by. He'd gone to several lectures and, to his surprise, run into quite a few colleagues he hadn't seen in a while. Tonight's big reception unofficially opened the event and the number of people mingling throughout the room proved the point. There were no speeches or presentations to bog things down and often people brought their spouses or partners who'd come with them to make the trip a quasi-vacation. A lot of reconnecting and introductions occurred over the course of the evening, and things were mostly relaxed before the heavier conference agenda started in the morning.

The open bar helped too. The bartender poured him a glass of water and he made sure to drop a five in the tip jar to cover his evening's drinks.

A few tables in front of him, he spotted a colleague from Sacramento that he should probably check in with. She and two other people were in deep conversation so Neil figured he'd track her down later. Farther along the bar ordering a glass of wine was a board trustee from a hospital in Phoenix that Allegra had asked him to talk to. Apparently, she'd started a campaign to recruit him to St. Bonaventure after learning he had a new granddaughter in the area. Another familiar face, Dr. Mulaney from SF Muni, arrived at the entrance, already honing in on an attractive blonde cardiologist from L.A. Neil almost rolled his eyes at that. At least he wouldn't have to deal with the cocky senior surgical attending who grated on his nerves whenever they had cause to consult each other.

As Neil did another visual sweep of the room, he considered his options and decided to get the potential board member out of the way. He searched the reception for where the man had gone after getting his wine.

His water glass frozen mid-sip against his mouth, his gaze stopped abruptly on a petite form, dusky complexion offsetting chestnut curls spilling across her shoulders. Dr. Claire Browne.

* * *

He'd spotted her from afar earlier in the day, then dressed in a sharp suit rather than the reception finery she had on now. The sleeveless burgundy dress with a modest high neckline seemed glamorous in its simplicity. A confident choice. As usual, her heels gave her a few extra inches. Even from this distance, her vibrant crimson lips, animated in conversation, caught his attention. She looked the same, but not. Then again, it'd been a few years since she'd left St. Bonaventure, and he stood far from the realm of regular contact with her. A lot could change—and not change—in that time.

When Claire tossed her long hair over one shoulder, it made him smile to see it. When she'd been his resident, she'd liked to change up her hairstyle every day he'd noticed. Sometimes her full mane would flow wavy and loose, yet constrained and controlled with a stylish braid or tight bun at her crown. Sometimes she tied it back or straightened it, contorted into some romantic updo or over the shoulder look. It all seemed a perfect style for her back then.

Now she wore it wild and free, like someone who went to bed not worrying about how the unpredictable curls would shape during the night; she'd still wake up in the morning looking organic and stunning anyway. Untamed. It suited her.

Neil realized that these were fairly exuberant thoughts to be thinking of his former resident. It's not that he hadn't found her attractive back then. He'd thought her beautiful as well as smart and caring. A rare doctor with a gift for precision and humanity. That appealed to him, he could admit now. Yet he'd never been tempted to think of her in a romantic way, really, despite his appreciation. It was easy then—she'd seemed so young to him most of the time, even when he sensed her spirit weighed more than someone twice her age given how she'd raised herself and achieved all that she had. He'd been with Jessica at first and Lim afterward so it'd been easy to suppress any untoward feelings.

Still there had been moments between them—of warmth or friendship. Something beyond mentor and student but more like man and woman.

And then she was gone through no fault of either of them. Neil remembered her last day there, watching her face as Andrews told her that although she was very talented and he knew she would excel, their surgical residency only allowed three spots and she was the odd person out. Marcus would give her the highest recommendation, of course, and offered to make any introductions she wanted. After all, they wanted her to land on her feet. Unspoken was that it would look better for the hospital when even their leftovers went on to excellence.

And that was that. Marcus told her she was free to wrap up her patients and clean out her locker. She could take her pending vacation time, but would need to stop by HR by the end of the day.

Sitting there in front of both him and Andrews, making a valiant effort to maintain her composure, he knew Claire well enough to recognize every emotion that flashed across her face at hearing the decision. Surprise. Betrayal. Crushing disappointment. And finally professional defiance and detachment. To Andrews, her responses were all respectful regret over the situation. She said all the right things about her appreciation for the opportunity and promised to sustain the high standards that St. Bonaventure instilled in her. He'd wanted her to look at him so he could on some level communicate that this wasn't his decision—he'd convinced himself that just one look would ease the hurt he saw in her eyes. Throughout the meeting, as she continued to avoid him, he'd willed her to spare him some attention, a desperate, needy compulsion.

Not until she excused herself did she set her striking eyes on him, a brief, tentative glance before closing the door behind her. To him, that look read as an accusation; that he'd chosen this. Or maybe that was his guilt talking. It felt like a slice straight into his gut.

Added to that frustration was that he couldn't even go after her, still needing to make congratulations to Reznick, Murphy, and Park. That bothered him a lot and Andrews knew it. Told him to wipe the scowl off his face before he called for the others. At the same time, though, he hoped Claire would be gone before she had to be the bigger person in front of her colleagues. Oh, she'd do it and handle it like a champ, but it wasn't fair. The kindness of a quiet departure seemed the least this day could give her.

Neil's expectation had been to keep Claire close, nurture her. He'd gotten used to the idea of her as his protégé. But the hospital had other plans. They'd grown used to the unique attention Dr. Shaun Murphy brought them and Glassman lobbied hard for him to stay. And truth be told, he'd gotten used to the quirky young doctor too. Lim snatched up Park, which made every kind of sense and was no surprise to anyone. Park was the only one who'd been inspired to specialize in trauma surgery. They were well-matched in style and temperament and there was still a lot to learn there.

That left Reznick and Claire. He'd made it clear that Dr. Browne was his first choice; that she was an innovative but practical thinker, brilliant surgeon, and pushed him to new skill levels even when they clashed. She'd been with him from the beginning of her residency class and he wanted to be the one to see her through. Yet, the board stepped in to force his hand, Andrews and Allegra working their manipulations. Reznick was connected. Reznick had a medical legacy they could market and a killer instinct to be a star. Claire was brilliant and talented. An asset to a prestigious hospital that didn't need to be on the fast track to renown. She'd be fine anywhere she went.

Not that he was at liberty to explain that reasoning to her.

Claire had been the better choice and anyone that interacted with the surgical teams knew it. She worked well with everyone, especially Dr. Murphy, and the staff loved her. Putting down roots in San Jose was something she'd shyly admitted to him one night as they'd monitored a patient together after a long, harsh surgery. She'd been missed in the years since her dismissal. Reznick was a fine doctor, but he sensed she had no attachment or loyalty to the hospital. She'd be gone as soon as she could get a leg up, off to the next big thing to pad her resume. Neil didn't begrudge her that—it simply reinforced that the board had made the wrong call.

He could have fought harder for Claire, pulled some strings and called in favors. Deep down, though, he could admit that Andrews had a point. Claire would excel anywhere and there were dozens of hospitals, ones with amazing programs, that would scoop her up. There was a lot he and his colleagues could teach her. Even Lim agreed that she'd had great potential. And there ended up being opportunities she became free to explore after they released her and it'd made her the best. Dr. Claire Browne was on her way to becoming an excellent, well-respected surgeon anyway.

And on the occasions when he let himself reflect honestly on it, as much as he wanted to mold her into the perfect surgeon, their professional relationship had a tendency to get complicated.

So, he let her go. He couldn't bring himself to regret it fully.

Seeing Claire now across the room made him smile into his drink. She'd finally run into Dr. Jared Kalu; they'd been the worst kept secret in the hospital during the time they'd been sleeping together their first year. Jared had been all puppy-eyed and determined, not seeing how guarded and cornered Claire got the longer they were together. Neil kept his mouth shut about it, and thankfully their fallout had been about as professional as one could hope for.

And there were no hard feelings from what he could tell. All three were animated, Claire clearly delighted to see Jared so happy and to meet his wife—and new family judging by the woman's rounded belly. When he'd caught up with Jared earlier at one of the ethics lectures, he'd been relieved to hear how well his former resident had done in Denver, now talking about starting his own practice with several of his fellow residents. There were no hard feelings between them after all their conflicts. Hearing Jared talking about becoming a new dad made him a little melancholy to think of his own dreams of finding someone and settling down with a family. There was yet time for all that is what he kept telling himself.

Right now, Jared was shaking his head at something Claire had said, probably a jest at his expense, while his wife snickered beside him. The sincerity in Claire's expression showed genuine joy and pleasure at the conversation.

So focused on his former residents, Neil almost got caught staring at them as Kalu and his wife took their leave. Staring at _her_ really, how could he not? He turned his head before she could notice his attention and signaled the bartender, ordering a real drink this time.

* * *

A minute later, he felt a presence slide in beside him and call for the bartender. He should have known nothing got past her.

"Dr. Browne," he greeted her.

"Dr. Melendez." A smirk tugged at her ruby lips as she gave the bartender her wine order. "Enjoy the show? Or were you expecting some fireworks."

"From two of my most stoic residents? Never." He took a sip of his bourbon to keep from grinning too widely at the pleasure of having her next to him. At that, she openly laughed and he joined her.

"It's nice to see him so happy. It looks good on him." She finally admitted.

"No lingering feelings?"

She gave him "that" look as she reached for the wine the bartender placed in front of her. "Really, Neil?"

He shrugged and gave her a look of his own, satisfied that she'd called him by his first name without his prompting. He'd insisted on it in the last few times they'd touched base. It seemed only fair since he'd been using hers for years now, and he hadn't been her boss in a long time.

"Why'd you two split up anyway?" He hadn't been curious at the time. Hospital personnel hooked up constantly—more than was wise in his opinion, himself included. They were incestuous environments that way, given the long hours and intensity. After all this time, seeing Claire and Jared together now made him wonder.

Claire thought about it for a moment, staring ahead and gripping her drink. "I guess we were too much alike. I know I could have worked harder at it—not been so casual about things. There was a moment where I thought we'd made a mistake," she chuckled nervously, glancing at him. Neil tried to convey that he wasn't judging her.

She sighed as she loosened her death grip on the wine glass, opting to instead stir the dark liquid around in a gentle, subconscious motion. "I think," she paused, gathering herself for an honest answer. "I think we both had a lot of baggage from growing up alone with people who were supposed to love us but instead let us down. In some ways, we saw the same things in each other. We didn't let our pasts make us bitter and didn't turn ugly because of it like we see so often." She smiled sadly and looked over at him for a moment. "But it also means that we didn't quite learn how to love in a healthy way either. We both just needed something the other couldn't give. Not because we didn't want to but because we didn't know how."

Neil nodded, understanding.

"Jared wanted someone to be as romantic and in love as his heart was. He needed the details, to be reassured. When I didn't remember the song from our first kiss, he figured I'd never be that for him." Something he couldn't name crossed her expression. "I'm glad he found that with his wife."

Neil didn't know Kalu as well, yet all of that struck him as true. The kid was soft-hearted—in a good way. That was bound to get him hurt a few times.

Turning back to Claire, he asked cautiously, "And what about you? What did you need?"

Claire met his gaze with those brilliant eyes of hers. "I needed time." She smiled and nodded at that fact. "The time to believe that loving someone didn't hurt, not in the way I was used to. At least that's what I needed then." She took another swallow of wine.

"Is that what you need now?" This genuinely intrigued him, that this incredible woman could have so much real doubt.

She smirked. "Not all of us can be softies like you."

"Like me," he replied in disbelief. "It almost sounds like you weren't my resident for two years.

He enjoyed the familiarity of her spontaneous laughter. "Don't try to deny it. Behind all that arrogance and bluster is someone who takes care of his pack." Her eyes softened at the memory of it. "I don't know if I ever thanked you for that. For how much you took care of us."

"That's what amazing attending doctors do," he responded, growing warm to his cheeks.

"You know, I always liked that you were an undercover softie, wearing your heart on your sleeve and representing for all the good, honest family men out there."

Neil scoffed, humor brightening his eyes. "Yet here we both are. At the bar by ourselves."

Claire laughed and tapped her wine glass against his tumbler. They both took long drags of their drinks.

"Well, back to work." Claire reached for her clutch with her free hand, wine glass in the other. "Gotta make the rounds and the night is still young." Neil toasted her again as she walked back into the crowd. His eyes followed her until she blended in, gone as suddenly as she'd appeared.

Chuckling to himself over their strange yet fun conversation, he stopped mid-sip as he noticed his colleague from Sacramento winding down her intense conversation from before. Now would be the perfect time to catch her.

And who knows, maybe he'd catch Claire again too sometime over the next few days.

* * *

Neil put the chance meeting out of his mind over the next hour in a whirlwind of conversation with old acquaintances, up-and-coming hot shots, celebrity doctors, and plenty of bored spouses and dates. At least they'd cut the dinner portion of the evening a few years ago. Those things were torture, being trapped at a table for hours eating mediocre hotel food and talking funding, hospital politics, and organ repair all night.

After an hour and a half of mingling, Neil figured soon enough people would start breaking off, solidifying mini-reunions with dinner plans or a second act at another bar. The lightweights would head back to their rooms to bed or otherwise beg off any further socializing. Neil was thinking of doing the latter. They still had a full day of workshops and lectures for the next two days and he'd prefer to save his energy by turning in early, maybe watching some baseball over a beer at the hotel's sports bar.

Looking for a table to place the nearly empty glass he'd been carrying around, he spotted Claire again, standing alone at a high top table checking her phone. She had a half-full glass of wine next to her and wore a slight frown at whatever she was reading.

Walking over, he leaned in on the table.

"Problem?"

She startled at his arrival, having been engrossed in whatever she'd been reading. Then she relaxed, relieved probably that his presence prevented another tedious conversation with a stranger demanding she be impressed.

"I inherited a research project that's turning into a bit of a nightmare. It seems the lab lost my samples for a few hours this afternoon, but all appears to be well now."

Neil chuckled at that. "You wouldn't know anything about handling that, of course."

Wincing at the reminder, Claire stowed her phone back in her purse. "Don't remind me. Not one of my fonder memories, I'm afraid." A pinkish tint spread across her cheek. "Although that does remind me of something. Remember Carly from the lab?"

Neil nodded. He hadn't known her well since he'd had residents to deal with the lab when she'd been around. But he did remember her sarcasm and that she made really excellent holiday cookies.

"It turns out she moved down here a few years ago for grad school," Claire continued. "And now we're at the same hospital. Small world."

"You don't say? That was probably a nice surprise to have a familiar face around."

"It was, actually. She's great."

He polished off the last of his drink and set the empty glass across from hers. "Speaking of familiar, this is classier than your usual pint of beer," nodding his head toward her wine. He tried not to focus on the fact that tastes could certainly change in the years since they'd worked together closely enough for him to know her regular habits.

"Don't worry, it's still in my repertoire," she assured him. Smiling coyly, she added, "The wine just works better with my outfit."

He automatically lowered his gaze to take in her lovely burgundy outfit again, as if he hadn't noticed when he'd first seen her across the room. While his resident, he hadn't looked past her youthfulness; he recognized it even now seeing her at her most sophisticated. Good genes, even better self-care he'd guess. Yet now, it mixed with the confidence of experience and age, less of an eagerness vibe so common in first-year residents but a simmering energy of a surgeon—and a beautiful woman—in her prime.

As if sensing his thoughts at her playful comment, she cleared her throat, nervously.

"Anyway. No one had anything on you and Lim, sipping your drinks like you're in a commercial. You with your 'Classic Melendez' look—tattoo, tailored open-necked shirt fitted to within an inch of its life." He laughed but didn't deny it. "And Lim with her leather jacket and badass attitude; even Andrews dressed to the nines in his expensive custom suits. We were the biggest slobs compared to you guys. None of the rest of us had a chance."

"I don't know, Reznick seemed pretty high fashion." He knew that would get a rise out of her; considered a little too late that he may have unwisely dug at an old wound.

Claire did scoff, but her humor was clear too. She shrugged, the sheen from her bare shoulder catching the light. "I guess if you're into that." The mischief in her eyes warmed him along with the last of his bourbon.

"Consider yourself lucky. Lim and I had Glassman as our role model. He has many strengths and fashion was not one of them." At that, she chuckled, eyes bright and showing a few extra lines at the corners than those early days on his service.

Neil looked around at the doctors mingling throughout the room. There were more stragglers than he would have guessed at this point in the evening. It was a bit of an older crowd than he expected. Surely a lot of golf was being discussed at the various tables and music played softly in the background. Claire caught on to his assessment and took a look around herself.

"Kind of a sedate crowd. This is my first one of these things and I was expecting it to be … more lively."

"Agreed." He checked the time and wondered if it was too early to cut and run. "Do you live close by or did you drive over?"

"I'm staying at the hotel actually, the small boutique one that's the overflow, not the conference one. We had someone from a sister hospital in Seattle flying in but she had a family emergency. I figured it would be nice to not have to drive in for the entire conference."

Neil tried not to look too pleased. "The one down the block?" Claire nodded. "I'm staying there too. They actually put me up in a suite this time. Big screen TV, separate entertaining space, soaking tub, the works."

A raised eyebrow from her at that. "Nice. Perk of seniority?"

"Won a bet against Andrews." She laughed at his smugness over it.

She looked around again. "You know better than I do about how these things go. Do you think it's too early to cut and run?"

"I was just wondering that myself," he interjected chuckling at their similar trains of thought. "Why not? We did our time." He waited as she took a large swallow from her wine glass, almost emptying it. "I was thinking of heading back to the hotel for a beer and some baseball at the bar. How about you join me, and I'll buy you dinner instead."

Claire cupped her cheek in her palm as she rested an arm on the table, figuring out what to make of his offer.

"And yes," he added, "I know you don't like baseball, but I'll be a good dinner companion regardless." She grinned at his recall of her ambivalence toward sports in general that had come up more than once during her time on his team.

Neil had a moment of fear that maybe he'd made her uncomfortable. To his ears, the request sounded entirely innocent. It certainly didn't bother him to spend the evening with a companionable former colleague whose company he enjoyed.

"That'd be nice," she responded finally, something satisfied as she'd scrutinized him and his offer. Drinking down the last of her wine, she picked up her purse from the table and gestured for him to lead the way.

TBC...


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three (Flashback)**

 _They'd kept in touch after Claire left—on a professional level—as she settled into her new hospital in San Diego._

 _Sometimes she would text him with a question about a patient when she knew his expertise would help. He'd email her a new journal article he thought would interest her, never quite letting go of his obligations as a mentor to her._

 _They'd exchange pleasantries, a bit stilted but friendly. That's how he'd learn scattered details about her life over time. Like that she'd gone hiking through the Sierra Nevada mountains for two weeks or that she'd taken up swimming after the tendonitis in her knee made running too troublesome. In one of her longer emails, she filled him in on her first solo surgery—an appendectomy on a circus clown whose show passed through Southern California. He'd actually laughed out loud at her description of the pre-op protocols that involved more makeup removal than anyone had ever seen before._

 _Not long into her residency, she was offered admission into a new surgical research program at her hospital. It split her learning between a standard surgical program and experience leading research projects focused on advancing surgical techniques. At the end of it, she'd qualify for a Ph.D if she added a few additional courses and committed to a dissertation-level independent project. He wouldn't have predicted that direction to her career; research had never seemed to excite her as much as being in the O.R. Yet Claire assured him that she'd consulted with her attending and the department heads of the program before making such a big decision. Ultimately, she felt it presented an opportunity to make her mark in a unique specialty. And he'd lost the right to tell her otherwise._

 _Yet a few weeks after she'd started the new program, he'd gotten an actual phone call from her, or a voicemail, rather, since he'd been in surgery when it came through. To his surprise, she'd wanted him to sponsor her research paper for the Bellman Prize for that year. Winning it was considered a career-maker. Andrews had won during his residency; Glassman had been a finalist, and Neil had received a notable mention with three co-authors as a fifth year of resident._

 _It sounded from her message as if she'd been nervous to make the ask. Still, she'd laid out her case in a thorough Dr. Claire Browne fashion. Even though she'd gotten references from her most recent and current attending, she felt more comfortable leading with a reference she'd worked with for longer. She understood if he preferred to sponsor one of his own residents and there was no pressure to say yes. He'd chuckled at her usual persuasiveness. She'd also sent an email with her attached publications and proposal, letting him know that he had plenty of time to decide if he wanted to look over her work and consider it._

 _When he'd called her back later that afternoon to tell her he'd be honored to sponsor her, he tried not to openly laugh at her surprise. She'd probably expected him to take the offered time to mull it over._

 _Neil noticed a longer than normal pause from her when he admitted he'd reads everything she publishes. That's why the decision to sponsor her came so quickly._

 _And the unspoken truth hung over the situation: even though they were both certain that Reznick also planned to submit, she hadn't asked Neil to sponsor her. He'd bet five bucks that she'd gotten Andrews to do the honors and was just waiting to break it to him when she requested to only list him as a reference. So, the arrangement worked out for everyone. And he wanted to do this for her.  
_

 _A few months later, hearing the good news directly had been amazing. He'd known something was up when he saw two missed calls from her without a message. It wouldn't have surprised him to learn she'd been just short of paging him. Before he could return the call, his phone rang again._

" _You got a second," Claire asked over the line when he'd answered. The brightness to her voice further intrigued him._

 _He really didn't. In fact, he'd been marching down the hall on his way to surgery, already in scrubs after checking in on the patient one last time. "I've got a whole minute before I need to grab something from the lab and scrub in. What's up."_

" _Oh, I'll make it quick then. Wait, don't you have residents for that? Because if you've been willing to get your own lab results all this time, I'm going to—"_

" _Dr. Browne," Neil warned, though amused at her admonishment._

" _That's Bellman Prize finalist, Dr. Browne to you."_

 _Neil stopped in the middle of the hallway. "You got it?" A few of the nurses' heads popped up to scowl at him for shouting in the hallway. He raised his hand in apology and continued down the corridor._

" _I did. I just found out." She still sounded a bit stunned. "I can't believe it."_

 _He shamelessly surrendered to her excitement, grinning from ear to ear. When a nurse brushed past him, he realized he'd slowed his pace, maybe a little stunned himself. And pleased. "I can definitely believe it. Your application was strong. They would have been crazy to overlook it. How does it feel?"_

 _He heard her let out a shaky breath. "It feels … overwhelming, honestly. I'm excited, though."_

" _Do you know who got the top prize and who placed?" He rounded the corner to the lab. Dr. Jim LaValle, his new first year resident, waited at the doorway, having just received the lab results. Neil took the paperwork and gestured for the young doctor to meet him in the O.R. In five minutes._

" _I heard that the oncology team at Johns Hopkins came in first. No surprise there." Neil grunted his agreement. They were cocky but talented. "I'm not familiar with the other two people that placed. One is from Canada and the other Chicago, although they're both fourth year residents."_

" _Impressive." Neil got on the elevator and pushed the button for the surgical level "I'll be sure to have all my residents read your winning submission."_

" _ALL of them?" Claire asked. It pleased him more than it should to imagine the wicked expression that no doubt accompanied her suggestion._

" _Even Reznick," Neil assured her. "I'm sure she'll mope for a few days and then find somewhere else to direct her energies. Try not to be too broken up about that."_

 _Claire chuckled. "I'll do my best."_

 _At the end of the hall, Nurse Flores pointed to O.R. 2 and then her watch as he stepped out of the elevator. She could be such a pain in the ass. It killed him that she was so good at her job. "Hey, I've gotta run, but congratulations. You deserve it."_

" _You're not just saying that because it makes you look good too?" She joked._

 _Neil laughed. "Of course, I'm saying that because you made me look good. He stopped at the entrance to O.R. 2, knowing more needed to be said. "But I'm also saying it because I'm really proud of you. I've always know you would accomplish great things. This is only the beginning." He hadn't meant it to just spill out of him like that, so nonchalant. He meant it; hoped she knew that._

 _Claire took so long to respond that he thought he'd lost the line. Before he could check that she was still there, she shyly responded, voice soft and sober._

" _Thank you. For sponsoring me and for being a good mentor. I know you don't need to do that anymore now that I'm not …" Neil stepped just inside the quiet O.R., familiar ache at the way she couldn't bring herself to finish that thought. "It means a lot, Dr. Melendez."_

 _His two junior residents across the room were scrubbing in and trying not to intrude on their boss's private conversation.  
_

" _It's a promise I'm glad to keep. Now I really have to go. My residents are staring me down about getting into this surgery."_

" _Of course," Claire stuttered. "Sorry, I'll let you go. I just wanted you to be the first to know."_

 _Neil smiled. "I'm glad you called. Keep in touch, huh?"_

" _Yeah, I will. Good luck with the surgery. And with Morgan," she added._

 _He joined in her laughter. "You're terrible. Bye."_

 _Storing his phone before starting his prep, he quickly looked over the lab results in his hand, confirming that they mirrored the tests run earlier that morning. He then handed the paperwork to the nurse on duty and joined his residents at the sink, fielding their eager questions and quizzing them in return. Claire's news had energized him, apparently._

 _To this day, he counted it as one of the highlights of his career._

 _TBC..._


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four**

Neil strolled down the carpeted hallway as he checked the afternoon conference schedule. He checked the time then readjusted the cuff of his blazer as he mentally kicked himself for getting cornered by the AMA representative for the Northern California region. Nice guy, but long-winded didn't begin to describe his communication style.

Scrolling through the remaining panel and meeting options, he took note of a few things he could go to, but nothing really stood out. It annoyed him a little. This conference usually had a lot of interesting presentations and panels, but the programming this year seemed off. All of the cool stuff happened on the first day—the demonstrations on the newest surgical technology, the workshops on theoretical techniques now being tested, the entertaining lecturers talking about the field's most incredible cases. Being so front-loaded, that left only a handful sessions worth going to for the rest of the time, and even those were things that he'd seen before or weren't entirely useful.

So focused on burning a hole in the schedule with his glare, he didn't see the other person coming around the corner until it was almost too late to avoid a collision. Stopping himself in time, Neil held his hands up in apology.

"Sorry, I wasn't—"

A smirk appeared across his face as he looked down on Claire Brown, also with her arms up to avoid running into him. Her scowl at his negligence turned to surprise and then friendly annoyance.

"Oh, it's you. Never mind, I'm not sorry at all," he joked.

"Shut up," she said, shoving him lightly in the shoulder. She'd traded in her cocktail dress for a navy pant suit with a flowered top in jewel tones. Instead of her long curls laying free, she'd pulled her hair into a loose up-do.

"Where are you running off to in such a hurry? The next session doesn't start for another …" He checked his watch again. "Twenty minutes."

She focused back down at the agenda clutched in her hand, stress creeping in. "I just got done having lunch with a doctor we're trying to convince to partner on a research project, and I haven't even had a chance to decide. I thought I'd find someplace to sit and look through everything again." She finally looked up to scan the hallway for a seating area and frowned at seeing none. Distracted again by the agenda, she asked, "So, what are you doing skulking around? Besides tackling unsuspecting surgeons in the hallway."

"Same as you, except, nothing looks good." He scanned the schedule again as if something would all of a sudden jump out at him that he'd missed the ten other times he'd looked it over.

"Ugh, I was hoping you'd have some suggestions." She honed in on one listing. "What about this one?" She pointed to a long description and leaned towards him so he could read along. "The subject sounds dry, but Dr. Donaldson is supposed to be excellent."

"Yeah, he is excellent. Just not to listen to for an hour and a half," he murmured, scanning the contents again. "Maybe this one? It might be okay." He pointed to a lecture scheduled for an hour and a half from now.

Claire peeked around his arm to get a better look at his suggestion. "It does, except I saw her speak a couple of months ago at a department retreat."

"Good?" he asked.

"Eh," she replied, shrugging. "She's great, but her research isn't going anywhere until she can replicate the results."

They now walked slowly down the hall, Claire still scrutinizing the schedule and Neil scrutinizing her. "So," he said, changing the subject. "What time did you get to sleep last night?"

Claire winced. "I don't want to tell you. It's embarrassing." He chuckled, figuring as much.

"Well, you don't need to tell me, because I can already guess."

They'd had a nice dinner the night before. A good spot at the hotel bar opened up a few minutes after they arrived, quiet enough to talk, yet positioned so Neil could still see the baseball game playing on the big screen TV. They'd both enjoyed another beer as they waited for their food and took the time to catch up on life. He'd filled her in on what all her old colleagues were doing, save Murphy who Claire spoke to regularly. She asked him about his new batch of residents, angling for him to admit that her class was his favorite. Over their meal, he quizzed her about the research she'd presented at a conference in Mexico City the previous month and her ideas for a trip to Europe she'd been mulling over. She made him recount every detail of the Jay-Z concert he'd scored VIP tickets to. He hadn't had an evening that comfortable and relaxed in a while, the beer and the good company no doubt playing a part in that.

Neil had insisted on paying as promised, and as he settled the bill, they'd joked about their early bed time. It hadn't even hit 10:00 yet. Neil still needed to tie up a few administrative items he had to oversee while he was gone, but he'd speculated that Claire would be out like a light before the evening news. That she appreciated a good night's sleep couldn't have changed too much over the years.

They'd parted on the elevator, wishing the other a friendly good night. And it had been a pretty good night. They'd laughed a lot and it felt nice.

It made him more thoughtful than normal when he returned to his room later. Maybe he'd let himself get a little too lonely, let his relationships become too casual. He had friends of course, and his on-again-off-again situation with Audrey. However, he could admit that he worked too much, telling himself it was all in the service of securing the chief of surgery position when the opportunity opened up.

As he turned in for the night, he settled on enjoying the contentment and relaxation. It'd been too long. And it felt good to reconnect with Claire as if they were old friends.

Turning his attention from the previous night and back to the woman in question walking next to him, a crazy idea sparked in his head.

"You know what," he asked, halting their stroll toward the main suite of panel rooms reserved for the conference activities. "Maybe we can go with the Alternate Agenda since today's schedule is less than inspiring."

The suggestion confused Claire judging by her expression. "I don't know anything about an alternate agenda." She flipped through the informational booklet looking for something she'd missed. "Did they mention it during one of your morning sessions?"

"Not exactly." Neil shoved his conference materials back into his briefcase. Then he snatched the conference booklet from her hands as she was reading it, grinning at the indignant scowl she gave him at that. "The Alternate Agenda is that we skip out on the afternoon sessions and go do something fun."

Claire, looked at him skeptically. "Maybe _you_ can do that, but this is my first time here. I can't just skip out?"

"Why not? It's a waste of time. I'd be doing you a disservice by forcing you to sit through a bunch of talks that I assure you will not be helpful. Besides, what's more educational than you showing me around San Diego for the afternoon?"

After pulling her bag more securely up her shoulder, she crossed her arms, still looking unconvinced. "And what am I supposed to tell my bosses when they ask me how the conference went?"

"You tell them about all the stuff you did see. Come on, Dr. Browne, that's amateur hour. And I know you don't need the certification credits. There's no way you haven't fulfilled your CME quota for the year already."

She rolled her eyes at that, but didn't deny it. "So if we play hooky—"

"—opt for the Alternate Agenda."

"Fine, whatever," she replied, but grinned as she did so. "I'm just wondering what's on this Alternate Agenda."

Neil considered the options. "Well, I haven't been to the beach in a while."

"The beach?" Claire cocked her head to the side. "And what do you propose is the educational experience in that?"

"We'd just have to see," he remarked, smoothly. "You have to be ready for anything if you're going to take a walk on the beach—shark attacks, sun stroke …" Claire laughed at his reaching. "Uh, roller skating accidents. It could get very busy out there. I bet we learn more sitting at a beachfront bar enjoying some appetizers than we would here."

Claire gazed past him to stare out the window at the bright sunny day. The trees in the courtyard swayed gently and there were several people resting on the benches enjoying the weather, mostly tourists in shorts and t-shirts but a few people in business attire similar to theirs.

"If it makes you feel better, you can always make up for it tomorrow. You really should check out the advancements in neurosurgery lecture before the luncheon." She turned back to him, and he could sense her resolve breaking as she considered his arguments.

She grinned at him. "Okay, but if anyone asks, I was here the whole time."

"Done," Neil agreed, already inspecting the hallway for the best escape route.

Claire tugged at his arm and gestured at the path they'd just come from. "I'm parked out this way." Nodding, he followed her, not bothering to hide the pleasure over their new plan.

* * *

An hour later, they were strolling along Mission Beach.

They'd both ditched their briefcases and blazers in the car, a necessity for the cold conference center, but overkill for the warm afternoon. Claire admitted that she hadn't been to this particular beach in a while, so they both were enjoying the people watching. Neither wanted to get too close to the sand and water in their business attire, so they found a nice bench down the boardwalk to chat, take in the view, and enjoy the sun. Sometimes they didn't talk at all and basked in the warmth like cats.

As the day went on, Claire teased him about there not being much in the way of shark attacks or other surgical emergencies, but had to admit it was much better than sitting through a boring lecture at a conference.

Making their way along the oceanfront, they marveled at some of the condos they passed and shared a couple of tacos. Neither minded the crowds. It made for a livelier atmosphere and a lot of antics to comment on as they strolled a mile or so along the beach and then looped back toward where Claire had parked.

They decided to have dinner before heading back to the hotel, choosing a casual café Claire had heard about from one of her co-workers. It turned out to be the perfect spot—full but not crowded, popular with the locals, not pretentious at all. A mixture of English and Spanish filled the space with families, couples, and groups young and old sharing good food and conversation. As they were finishing their meal, a live Latin band started setting up by the bar, drawing a crowd to the large space that spilled onto the patio. Claire and Neil ended up moving over there to stay a while longer, watching couples fill the dance floor.

Sipping his beer, Neil stared sideways at Claire, a soft smile at her lips as she watched the dance floor. Following her gaze, he grinned himself as two kids appeared to be taking the rest of the dancers to school with their moves. The little girl in particular quite enjoyed being the center of attention, and she deserved it for the dramatic flare she put into her dancing.

Glancing back at Claire, he took in the way her body moved slightly to the music, catching the beat in her shoulders and hips as she shimmied in her seat. The string of lights lining the patio caught the shine of the stones in her earrings and in the necklace that lay at the base of her throat. The spotlights from the stage cast her cheeks and eyes in a lovely glow, the motion of people and slight breeze in the area fluttering the ruffle at the shoulder of her silky blouse. A few strands of hair had escaped her elaborate twist and played along her ear in time with her movements.

He took a drag of his beer to distract him from any further ogling. Not that he could bring himself to feel too bad about appreciating the woman next to him. And he hadn't been the only one; their waiter hadn't been subtle in his attention. Even now, he tried—and failed—to hide his annoyance with the much too curious stares of a group of men at the other end of the bar, Claire oblivious to the exchange.

Now considering another kind of distraction, Neil noticed a decent gap in the dance floor and nudged Claire's shoulder with his. "How about we give it a go?" gesturing toward the group of dancers. Her eyebrows shot up in surprise as she tried not to choke on her beer mid-swallow.

"I don't think so. I am not nearly drunk enough to get out there." She'd abruptly quit her light dancing and turned back around on her stool as if that would dispel the idea.

Her quick dismissal only motivated him. "Come on," he pleaded, hopping off his stool but leaning closer to her against the bar. "Look at how much fun everyone is having." They both glanced back across the dance floor, and most people were indeed full of laughs and casual abandon as they danced."

Claire's brow furrowed. "Yeah, that's because they know what they're doing. I am a terrible dance partner."

"Well, lucky for you, I happen to be a great dancer." His twinkling eyes challenged her, appealing to her ever-present need to be excellent. Then he laughed at the uncharacteristic fear he caught in her eye. "Okay, then consider this the education part of your afternoon. I'll teach you everything you need to know."

The skepticism remained on Claire's face. "Nice try. But I'm the one who has to live in this town, and I'm not keen on being a laughing stock just yet." She tried to laugh it off, but neither bought her attempts to shrug him off. He'd rattled her. For some reason, that rather satisfied him.

"I would never let you look foolish. I've got a reputation to protect too, after all." He flashed his most charming grin at her; she still appeared unmoved. Neil shook his head and twisted her stool around until she was facing him and the dance floor. He grabbed her hands and tried to pull her to her feet. Unsuccessfully. Damn, she was stronger than he thought.

"Neil," she drawled out, both in warning and with the edge of a threat.

"Come on, Claire, it'll be fun."

As they played tug-o-war, a tap on his shoulder caught both of their attention. An older woman stood behind Neil, smiling over their argument. "How about you and I show your young lady how it's done first?" She appeared to be about the same age as his Tia Nadia and Tia Marie who had been his first dancing partners back when he was a boy.

Claire raised an eyebrow, now amused at the offer. She immediately pulled one of her hands from his and gestured for him to take the stranger up on the offer that conveniently got her off the hook.

When Neil scrutinized his potential new dance partner, he noticed a conspiratorial glint in her eye and smiled down at her. She had something up her sleeve for sure.

"Yes, why don't we." He let go of Claire and and took the woman's hand, winking as he retreated. Much to his partner's delight, he immediately twirled her among the other dancers.

Even though Neil was rusty and the woman a much better dancer than him, she let him lead, following each cue and presenting him as a steady, experienced partner. In the chaos of the dance floor, he could only catch glimpses of Claire as she watched on, clearly enjoying the show and moving along to the music again a little more freely now that she thought she'd gotten out of his offer. Each snapshot of her as he moved among the dancers highlighted something new—the loose curls framing her warm and sun-kissed face; the line of her leg, ending in the heeled foot tapping against the stool; the way her gaze followed him from one spot on the dance floor to the other. She leaned against the back of the bar with her beer bottle still in hand, giggling sweetly when their eyes would lock for a few beats.

"Do you think she's seen enough," his dancing partner asked him in Spanish.

Neil chuckled, spinning her securely before drawing her back into his hold. "Let's hope so," he replied as he maneuvered them back to where they'd started. She led him back to Claire, cheeks flushed and clearly pleased at the twirl around the dance floor Neil had given her.

"Thank you for letting me borrow your gentleman," she said to Claire.

"No problem. You two looked great," Claire replied. Her smiling eyes then met Neil's, and he shrugged as if to say 'I told you so."

"Now, my love," the woman said, leaning into the bar so she could give Claire a shove out of her seat, "it's your turn." Neil, having had an inkling of the woman's plan, positioned himself in the perfect spot as the momentum pushed Claire right into his embrace.

Before Claire could react, Neil had his arm around her waist as he guided her toward the dance floor. "You heard her. And we wouldn't want to disrespect our elders would we?" He watched as Claire's joyful expression turned to panic. He held her loosely but confidently, letting her know that he wouldn't let her flounder.

"Melendez, I am so going to kill you when you least expect it," Claire promised, as she held on for dear life.

"Oh, it's Melendez now." Neil laughed. "You'll be great. Just follow my lead."

"That's easy for you to say." But even as she looked nervously down at her feet, he could feel her picking up the rhythm of the music.

"Nope," he said, letting go of her hand to lift her chin up. "Eyes up here. You've got this." Neil kept his pace easy and slow, letting Claire get used to the movement. She was stiff and unsure; he repositioned her hand at his shoulder before pulling her back into his hold. After a few minutes, he could sense her getting more comfortable as he maneuvered her carefully around the small space he'd claimed for them.

"See, you're a natural," he assured her, speeding up a little as the band transitioned into a different song. "You ready to get fancy?"

"Absolutely not," she said, fixing him with a stern look that only made him grin back down at her.

"Just go with it," he warned and winked at her. Not waiting for any further protest, he pulled her hand from his shoulder and spun her around, twice, returning to the hold before she'd even thought to panic. To his surprise and pleasure, she'd heeded his words and let him guide her, following a fraction of a second behind his every move.

They danced like this for another two songs. Claire finally loosened up and chuckled at their dramatics as she finally started to believe that maybe she wasn't embarrassing either one of them with her lack of skill. Neil couldn't ignore that they fit well together. From the moment he took her hand, he'd known how to hold her, where to move her, when to pull her close and when to show her off.

It was very, very nice.

"See," Neil said, staring down at her. "This is fun." He dipped her slightly, enjoying the slight panic at his sudden move.

"I'm not sure I'd use that word." She squeezed at his shoulder a little tighter as they almost collided with another couple. "Maybe if you weren't so insistent on showing off."

Neil chuckled, pulling her a bit closer. "Don't worry, I've got you," he murmured in his ear. She didn't respond, yet let him continue to lead her around, even laughing a bit as she tried to anticipate when Neil would spring some new move on her. It wasn't lost on him the trust involved in that.

When they returned to their seats, a little flushed and out of breath, Claire was relaxed and smiling. And as he continued to compliment her, it pleased him that she seemed triumphant at learning something new.

Checking her watch, she suggested they head back to the hotel now that the evening traffic had likely thinned out. For being such a good sport, he'd offered to drive them back, and shockingly, she let him.

* * *

All too soon, they found themselves back at the hotel. Making their way into the lavish building, they both felt like they'd spent a whole day adventuring around the city. They kept a leisurely pace through the lobby on their way to the elevators as they dodged other guests coming and going.

"We got quite the workout today," Claire remarked, perhaps picking up on his train of thought.

Noticing the drone of loud conversation coming from the hotel bar, Neil nodded. "Much better than those guys in there, though. When people are that eager for a drink at the end of the day, you know it had to have been a trying one."

She laughed. "Probably. I'm sure their feet are holding up better than mine, though. I didn't quite make the best choices on that front. Glad I won't have to hit the gym, although my body feels like I did."

Neil stared down at the sturdy but raised heels she'd been wearing all day and how tensely she held her body as they walked. The walking and dancing hadn't seemed to bother her before, but it didn't surprise him that the abuse to her body had caught up with her. Now that she mentioned it, he was feeling a little stiff and tight himself.

"I'll only feel guilty about the dancing part," he joked. "No matter how right I was about how well you did."

"I'm never going to hear the end of that am I?"

"Not a chance." He frowned as he watched her rub at her neck. She really did look beat. Another idea came to mind, yet this one had him a little on edge. He pulled her to a stop before they got to the elevators and split up to their separate rooms.

"So, this is going to sound weird, and I don't mean it to be."

Instead of looking worried, Claire smirked at him. "This ought to be good then."

He hoped she'd find the practicality in his suggestion rather than immediately branding him a creep when he shared his idea. "Did you bring a swimsuit?"

"Of course," she replied, cautiously. "You know I try to swim every morning before work."

Putting his hands casually in his pockets, he looked around the lobby, stalling. It gave him time to ponder whether his suggestion was really one he should share given how nicely the afternoon had gone for them.

To hell with it.

"Remember I said that I had this crazy suite."

"Don't rub it in," she said rolling her eyes. "Big screen TV, lounge—"

"Soaking tub," he added. Her expression turned a bit unreadable at that. "It's huge," He rushed to clarify. "A regular-sized jacuzzi really. Separate seating areas, plenty of space. There's even a TV mounted on the wall since it's really for lounging rather than bathing."

Claire continued to stare at him, and it made him very nervous. After all, no matter how long they'd known each other and how much they'd enjoyed spending time together today, it was very loaded for a former boss to ask a beautiful woman back to his hotel room, even if an innocent request.

Not that he could claim the request was entirely innocent. Mostly innocent, but not entirely.

"No pressure," he added. Claire cocked her head to the side as if trying to crawl into his mind to scrutinize his intentions. Or planning just how long and loudly she'd need to be when she told him what he could do with his bad idea.

"I thought it'd do us both good. To soak in the jacuzzi after exerting ourselves, that is," he stammered, "...with the walking and dancing and stuff." Neil calculated this moment as the exact point when regret set in. He should have kept his big mouth shut. "It's just you said your feet hurt and you were sore, I was just trying to …"

He realized he didn't quite know how to finish that sentence. What had he been trying to do, really?

Then a flash of amusement crossed her face, an adorable glint in her eye. It struck him that she very much enjoyed watching him squirm.

"Alternate Agenda?" she asked, grinning.

"Something like that, I guess." He rubbed at his neck. He hadn't meant that to come out so suggestively, but as the moment lingered, he couldn't deny the implications of what he'd said. Claire held his gaze confidently, not seeming intimidated or uneasy at what was beginning to take shape between them.

Then Claire's expression turned serious. "We're friends, right? I mean, you were my attending at one time, but all this today? It's not just about some responsibility to mentor me?"

He looked down and away, a bit uncomfortable at her directness. "No, it wasn't about that. We've known each other a while," he offered weakly.

Waiting until he focused on her face again, Claire's gaze didn't waver as she considered how to finish her thought. "I'm not your resident anymore, Neil. I haven't been for a long time. I'd like to think that you see me as a colleague and not that eager young surgeon from when we met."

"I do," he assured her. "I consider you a friend."

"Good. Then don't make things weird." She smiled at him, and he shifted anxiously, hands still in his pockets. "I know what you meant, and it's nice. I'm not going to call security on you or anything." Neil let out a huge breath, relieved but a little embarrassed at how he'd come across to her.

"You liked making me sweat that out, didn't you." Claire shrugged one shoulder, looking pretty satisfied. "Not nice." He bit into his lip and failed miserably at looking displeased with her.

"Neither is colluding with a stranger to get me to embarrass myself on the dance floor," she shot back. "So, I guess we're even."

Neil acknowledged the point, albeit smugly. Though that move he did not regret at all.

"Besides, a jacuzzi sounds great right about now. Especially one that's not a disgusting incubator of a hundred people's germs." She rubbed at her neck again and this time Neil felt his palms tingle with the impulse to reach out and help her along. She poked him in the shoulder, facing the elevator once more. "Your petri dish of germs, I can handle."

"Uh, thanks?" he replied. They caught the next elevator and hit their respective buttons. When her floor came up, he looked at his watch. "So, meet you in my room in ten? Room 2225"

"Ten it is. Make sure the water's nice and hot." She waved at him, and like an idiot he waved back as the doors closed.

Now alone, he let out a long breath and wondered what he'd gotten himself into. Yet he couldn't wipe the smile off his face the entire way back to his room.

TBC...

* * *

 _ **Author's Note: By the way, I've been in one of those huge soaking tubs. They're massive. We could have fit like 4 people in them.**_


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter Five (Flashback)**

 _Neil hadn't expected Claire to update him on her good friend and his former patient Kayla. But he was glad to hear from her in those last days._

 _Kayla wanted to thank the man who'd given her what ended up being almost two extra years of time with her husband, Dash, and their loved ones. Like Claire, Kayla didn't have much family. Her parents had died in a car accident while she'd been at college and Dash's family mostly lived on the East Coast, Claire had told him afterwards. So, spending a little more time enjoying life with her husband pain-free and saying a proper goodbye to her close-knit circle of friends had meant the world._

 _However, Neil eventually learned Kayla had another motive for insisting Claire contact her ex-boss._

 _When the call came in, he'd been in his office reviewing the surgical protocols for his schedule the following day. Reznick sat across from him chatting about some article she'd read a few months ago on the new surgical technique they were using. Since he'd consulted on the research for that particular article, he only half listened. He figured it counted as a teachable moment to let her summarize what she'd gotten out of the article while they waited for updated lab results and he signed off on the equipment list and support staff. Shaun sat listening and interjecting a clarification every few minutes. Neil relaxed into the familiar rhythm of their banter and let it flow past him like background noise._

 _In front of him, the phone's buzzing drew his glance to the caller ID. He'd let it go to voicemail if it didn't seem urgent. Claire's name made him straighten in surprise and snatch the phone up before either of his residents could peek at the screen. They were both pretty nosy, and he had no desire to field questions about Claire with them today or any day._

" _Can you give me a minute?" He gestured for Reznick and Murphy to wait outside. "I need to take this." Morgan nodded, eyes shifting to his phone for a moment, no doubt wondering whose call ranked high enough to get her kicked out of her attending_ _'s office. Shaun glanced at his watch as if starting an internal timer to keep Neil to his promised time limit. Neil tried hard not to roll his eyes and clarified, "a few minutes, then, if you don't mind." Shaun nodded too and headed for the door._

" _I'll, uh, just go check on our lab results, see if I can rush them." Yep, Reznick was definitely annoyed at being dismissed, but wasn't going to question it. She slowly gathered her things as he answered the call. He sent her an irritated look at her foot-dragging and that hurried her along._

" _Hello?" Morgan backed out of the door, arms full of her notes, coat, and tablet. Neil waved her on._

" _Dr. Melendez, hi," Claire said on the line. "I hope this isn't a bad time. Do you have a minute."_

 _"Depends on why you're calling," he joked._

" _Yeah, I guess so." There was something off about her tone. She sounded tense and maybe a little tired. It worried him, but he felt weird bringing it up._

 _Instead, he answered her question. "I'm not busy. Just going over my schedule for tomorrow with Murphy and Reznick."_

" _Oh, uh, well, tell Shaun I said hi."_

 _Neil chuckled at the intentional snub for Morgan. "I'll tell him later. They went to go check on some lab work." He didn't need to explicitly say that he'd sent them out of the room at seeing her call._

" _Good, thanks." She paused and he picked up a faint voice in the background. "Actually, there's someone here who wants to say hi to you too."_

 _That piqued Neil's interest. "Oh yeah? Who?"_

" _Hold on, I'm putting you on speaker." Shuffling noises flooded the line as she moved around and situated herself next to whoever would be joining the call._

" _Dr. Melendez," a soft voice sounded into the phone. That must have been who he'd heard in the background. She sounded nearly as faint as before, even with the phone close to her. "It's Kayla. And Dash too."_

" _Hey, Dr. Melendez," he heard a bit more distantly._

 _Neil gripped the phone in surprise that quickly turned to a sharp pain in his chest. That Claire's friend had hung on this long seemed like a miracle, but he'd guess this call meant her time was quickly running out._

 _Trying to sound as normal as possible, he shook his head to focus. "This is a nice surprise. It's good to hear from both of you."_

" _It's so good to be heard," Kayla said kindly. Neil recognized her manner; the resignation and contentment of accepting death. The gratefulness of having extra time to get to that point. "I'm sure you've guessed that, unfortunately, I've run out of borrowed time. I asked Claire to call because I wanted to tell you before it's too late that I'm so thankful for it. The extra time you gave all of us together."_

" _Kayla, it was my pleasure. I'm glad I could help, both as your doctor and as a favor to Claire."_

 _Kayla chuckled into the phone, more of a gasp at this point, but he could recognize that the conversation amused her. "That's nice to hear since I found out later you were kind of mad at her at the time."_

" _Kay!" he heard Claire say in the background, indignant and a little embarrassed._

 _Neil laughed too. "It worked out for all of us, then."_

" _You are in so much trouble," she heard Claire say, amusement in her voice._

" _Is there anything I can do?" Neil offered. "Pain management? Referrals? Anything to help?"_

" _No, no, none of that. My doctors put me on hospice three weeks ago. It's the end of the line and we've all had time to come to terms with it."_

 _Neil nodded, although he wondered how much that could be true for her husband who'd been so distraught at the idea of losing her. Claire too, although she'd put her emotions and stubbornness aside to ask for his help._

 _There was more scuffling on the line as someone must have passed the phone over. "I'll get it, you finish your call," Claire said moving away from the phone._

" _That must be the supply company coming to pick up some equipment," Dash said to Kayla. Then more directly into the line. "Sorry about that, Dr. Melendez. It's been a bit chaotic with people stopping by and dealing with logistics and things." He sighed. "We've been fielding a lot of phone calls and visits today so Kayla can be as comfortable as possible this week."_

" _Oh, I'm fine," Kayla added. "But it will be nice when it's just the three of us. That bottle of wine isn't going to drink itself."_

" _No, it will not," Dash agreed, laughing. "And Claire brought her guitar so we'll be entertained."_

" _Yes!" Kayla's enthusiasm, seeping through her exhaustion, was contagious. "Maybe I can finally convince her to do the acoustic version of Pony again."_

 _Neil almost choked on his laughter. "What?"_

" _From back in college," Dash clarified. "Babe, I wouldn't bet on that. You don't have enough wine to make a good enough case for it."_

 _Their conversation warmed Neil. He couldn't imagine going through what they were dealing with and at such a young age. Yet they handled it with love and maturity. At least they had that little bit of luck and goodness in their lives._

" _Enough about our big plans. Dr. Melendez, I wouldn't want you to get jealous of our fun." Kayla said. "While Claire's gone, can I ask you a favor, though?"_

" _Anything," he assured her._

" _Claire's always had so much respect for you. Even when she moved down to San Diego, she told me about how much your opinion meant to her and what a great mentor you've been."_

 _It wasn't a shock to hear her say this so much as a surprise at how comforted he was Claire felt that way. And then the lingering guilt hit him at why she had to be 500 miles away from her dying friend._

" _I also think very highly of Dr. Browne. I hope she knows that."_

" _I think she does." Kayla sighed. "You know her. She's so determined and strong. I just wanted to ask that you keep an eye out for her. She's doing well down in San Diego, but I don't think it's the same for her as those years she spent at your hospital. She'd been opening up there and now she's just as closed off as when I first met her. I don't want that for her, but I won't be around to push her; to help her see that there are so many experiences this life has to offer her. Claire is one of the most wonderful people I've ever known, and I don't want her life to be just work and career and casual relationships."_

" _I'm not the greatest role model on that front, I'm afraid," Neil responded. "But I'll try. As long as she lets me."_

" _Well, you can help each other then."_

 _Neil heard Dash chuckling. "Here it comes. Go easy on the guy, Kayla."_

" _I'm dying," she countered to him. "I can say what I want."_

 _Neil leaned back in his chair, a cautious grin on his face. "Should I be scared?"_

 _Kayla laughed and then coughed a bit. He could tell when Dash offered her a sip of water so she could continue. "Don't listen to Dash. He's just a sore loser."_

" _Meaning?" Neil asked._

" _Meaning," Kayla said with a renewed energy. "_ _ _Claire has a tendency to run. So don't let her._ As long as you're keeping an eye on her, it wouldn't hurt you to, I don't know, ask her to dinner or something."_

" _What?" exclaimed Neil, chuckling into the phone as he straightened in his chair. "I was her boss."_

" _And now you're not."_

" _I'm like 10 years older than she is."_

" _Eight and a half. And so?"_

" _We live 500 miles apart."_

" _I hear Southwest has great deals on shuttle flights. By the way, none of this sounds like a lack of interest."_

" _I'm not interested," he finally said to satisfy her._

" _Well, get interested. She's a catch. Beautiful, brilliant, talented. You know all this."_

 _Those were thoughts he had never let himself entertain. Now didn't seem like a good time to start. "I will admit that Dr. Browne is an exceptional doctor."_

" _And woman," Kayla added."_

" _Sure. And woman." The room suddenly seemed too hot even without his blazer. He scrambled for anything that might convince Claire's friend to ease off her campaign despite her clear conviction. "I can assure you, that she'll be just as reluctant as I am. Even though it's in the past, she was my resident and I was her attending. Neither of us are going to want to explain that to other people."_

" _Who cares about other people? Seriously. What is this, high school?"  
_

 _"I don't know, you tell me," Neil quipped back." He leaned back in his chair again, amused by her persistence. "Have you considered that maybe I'm not available and am actually seeing someone else right now," he asked._

" _No, you're not." She sounded pretty assertive and confident for a woman on her death bed._

" _You don't know that," he said, chuckling._

 _From his end of the line, he heard her taking another sip of water. Presumably. Given this conversation, he supposed it could be that wine she mentioned. "Oh, I'm pretty sure. If you were seeing someone else, that would have been the first thing you mentioned."_

 _She had a good point. And he had to admire her spirit despite being at the end of a long illness._

" _Look, it was a nice try, and I appreciate what a good friend you are to Claire, but it's not going to happen." His tone shifted from humored to serious. "You should focus on enjoying this time together. Because if Claire finds out about this, she'll be pissed."_

" _See! You know her so well already. This could be just the beginning!"_

 _"You're impossible." Neil laughed. "I think no more wine for you. Your husband has certainly got his hands full right now."_

" _Don't I know it," Dash said from close by. Then to Kayla, "Hon, you gave it your best shot. Claire's almost done and Dr. Melendez is right. She is not going to appreciate hearing about this conversation."_

" _But they'd make such cute babies." Kayla whined. "Fine. I've said my peace. Don't say no, Dr. Melendez. Just think about it. She needs to stop running and I have a feeling that you'd be a good destination. Someplace she could stay awhile."_

 _In Neil's line of work, he saw a lot of death and heartbreak and situations where he could only help so much or not help at all. So, when presented with a scenario where he could easily make someone happy before passing on, he'd happily comply._

" _I promise to think about it. Good enough?"_

" _It'll have to be." She still sounded a little miffed, but seemed willing to let it go._

" _Think about what?" Claire asked, joining the conversation again._

" _Everything all set with the medical supply guys, "Kayla asked, deflecting._

" _Yeah, all set," Claire must have settled back in since she sounded closer. "Are you good here? Dr. Melendez, I don't want to take up too much of your time. I'm sure you're busy."_

" _No, it's fine. It's been …" There were so many adjectives to describe the conversation he'd just had: perplexing, insane, delusional. But he'd settle on the most powerful of his responses. "Fun. It's been fun. Thank you for calling me." He paused and thought about the implications for himself and the response from Kayla before adding, "And next time I see you, I'll expect to hear all about your college-era rendition of Pony."_

" _How did you—Kayla, are you kidding me? You are impossible!"_

 _"You hear that, Dr. Melendez? Claire thinks I'm 'impossible,'" Kayla mocked, no doubt emphasizing his exact response to her a moment ago._ _More shuffling of the phone punctuated the small gaspy laughs from Kayla and chuckles from Dash. "C'mon Claire, just one verse."_

" _No, we retired that little stunt in junior year. It was supposed to be a joke in the first place, making fun of all the bros who think they're so clever covering that song."_

 _Dash, laughed. "That's why it's so funny when you do it."_

" _I'm just a bachelor.'" Kayla decided to start without her in a valiant effort at persuasion. At this point, Neil had to admire her tenacity, deathbed or no. "Come on, Claire, let's do this. 'I'm looking for a partner.'" Kayla crooned out the lyrics alternating between a breathy rasp and strained giggles._

" _Stop it." But the mirth in Claire's voice signaled her fading resolve._

" _Someone who knows how to ride," Help me out Dash.'_

" _Don't you dare." Claire's laughter said otherwise, though. It was almost as if they forgot he was even on the line. And he really enjoyed this; a peek at her past. A glimpse into the history of Claire._

" _Without even falling off," her husband joined in._

" _I hate both of you," Claire said._

 _Kayla and Dash continued, "'Gotta be compatible! Take me to my limits."_

 _Neil silently joined in the laughter, hoping not to distract them into remembering that he could hear their entire exchange. Then he abruptly sobered upon hearing Claire's clear, beautiful voice softly drifting alongside her friends._

" _Girl when I break you off," they all sang together, Claire clearly the professional of the three. "'I promise that you won't want to get off.'"_

 _It was one of the sweetest yet dirtiest sounds he'd ever heard from his former resident, that's the only way he could describe what registered to his ear. And it's not as if he hadn't heard her singing voice before, but not like this. He couldn't even complain at the conflicting emotions it caused since he'd technically asked for it._

 _And he kind of wanted to hear more._

" _Everybody now!" Dash requested as if reading Neil's thoughts._

" _Even you Dr. Melendez," Kayla added._

 _Neil now let himself laugh out loud. "Oh no, I don't think so."_

 _Kayla scoffed. "You're the one who started it. Thanks, by the way. I know you remember the words. Everybody knows the words."_

" _That's beside the point. I'm at work. I can't be caught belting out Ginuwine around here."_

" _Says who? Tell him, Claire."_

" _Uh, that's enough Kay. I agree. It's rather inappropriate for the prudish hallways of St. Bonaventure, anyway. I think everyone's had enough."_

 _"We really haven't," Kayla countered._

 _"We were just getting to the good part!" Dash said simultaneously._

 _He could tell from Claire's tone that she was a little embarrassed by momentarily surrendering to a bit of silliness in front of him with her friends._ " _That's exactly why we need to stop. Say goodbye to Dr. Melendez, kids."_

" _Neither of you are any fun," Kayla pouted. "But thanks again, Dr. Melendez. Take care of yourself. You're one of the good guys."_

 _Dash joined in. "From me too."_

 _"Take care," Neil returned, still chuckling._

 _The phone shuffled around some more and he heard the sound shift as Claire disengaged the speakerphone._

" _You're in trouble too, you know."_

" _I know," Neil responded, not sounding at all sorry. "Worth it."_

 _Claire's voice softened. "Seriously, though, I appreciate you talking to them. I know it meant a lot to Kayla. And to me," she added. "Really, I can't thank you enough for giving us this time." It broke his heart to hear the way her voice wavered at that, tears clearly close to the surface so soon after sharing such warmth and laughter with her friends._

" _How long are they saying?"_

" _Three or four days, at most." He heard her sniffle a bit, but otherwise she held her composure._

 _Neil sighed again, rubbing at his eyes. These things never got easier. "I'm so sorry, Claire." He paused, reluctant to continue after the conversation he'd had with her friends, but knowing he'd ask anyway. "Do you need anything? Is there anything I can do?"_

" _That's really nice of you." This time he did sense some tears in her words._

" _Come on, there's gotta be something. I know how stressed out you must be. How about coffee? My treat?" He sensed her hesitation. "Not here at the hospital. Somewhere more … relaxing."_

 _The silence lingered for a few moments more. "Maybe coffee?" she asked, shyly. "You can tell me about your latest brilliant surgeries."_

" _How about you tell me about_ your _latest brilliant surgeries?"_

" _Deal," Claire said, laughing and sniffling at the same time. "Thanks."_

" _No more 'thank yous.' I'm in surgery most of tomorrow, but maybe Thursday morning? Depending on how things go on your end."_

" _I'll pencil you in."_

 _Neil smiled, telling himself that it felt good to help a former colleague and friend rather than dwell on the fact that it'd taken him only thirty seconds to half-way fulfill Kayla's last request._ _From the corner of his eye, he noticed Murphy pacing and fidgeting outside his office door, Morgan next to him, clearly curious at why he had a goofy smile on his face and why he'd needed to have it in private._

 _Straightening himself out, he sat up at his desk and cleared his throat. "Hey, I gotta go. It looks like my residents are stalking me outside the door." Claire snorted at that and he tamped down a smile at that too._

" _Oh, I remember those days. I'll talk to you soon." They said their goodbyes and he waved Murphy and Reznick back in, making it clear from his stern expression that he'd not be entertaining questions about his personal calls. He made a mental note, however, to pass on Claire's message to Shaun the next time they had a moment alone._

 _His next day of surgeries went as scheduled and he'd planned on meeting Claire the next morning at a coffee shop near Kayla and Dash's house. Except thirty minutes before they were set to meet, one of his patients came down with an unexpected post-op emergency and Neil was called back to the hospital. When he'd checked in with her later that day, he'd learned that Kayla had taken a turn for the worst that afternoon and probably wouldn't last the night._ _With her next few days spent mourning and putting funeral plans into motion, they never did make up those coffee plans._

 _Neil tried not to regret it too much. Despite Kayla's insistence to the contrary, maybe that was meant to be._

 _TBC..._

 ** _Author's Note: The decision to go with Pony came from my co-worker who is a big Parks and Rec fan. Although ultimately, it was funny to us because there really are a lot of bros who like to do acoustic versions of it._**


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter Six**

Neil took a break from watching the baseball game on the TV to take a drink from his water bottle. Completely relaxed, he figured he'd been in the tub for about twenty minutes. The water bubbled at his chest and every so often he'd recline a little lower to warm up the exposed parts of his body. Normally, he'd be bored to death just sitting like this, yet he couldn't complain about an evening full of a steamy liquid massage and baseball.

As he placed his water bottle back on the ledge of the tub, his eyes drifted to the woman sitting across from him. Claire's presence, he confessed, likely had something to do with his contentment, too.

She had an almost sleepy air about her with her eyes closed and head leaning back against the tile wall. Given her short stature, she'd mostly submerged herself in the water, almost to her chin, moisture and probably sweat beading at her throat and the sides of her face. Her own water bottle sat in the corner still three-quarters full. As he'd noticed throughout their time in the tub, she lazily swayed her legs against the churning water as she alternated between reclining against the edge and floating just under the surface.

Satisfied that she was doing well, he turned back to the game.

Claire had shown up at his door fifteen minutes after they'd parted in the elevators, complaining about having to check in with the research director about her problem project. The timing had worked out since Neil hadn't factored in how long it would take to fill a tub of this size. It had been barely two-thirds full by the time she got there. He'd answered the door in his swim trunks and a t-shirt, thinking that he didn't want to freak her out by greeting her half naked. He really had invited her up here to be helpful and not at some awkward play at seduction. Simply a relaxing end to a long day.

Tote bag in hand, she wore loose workout pants and a tank top over her swimsuit. She'd re-tied her hair to rest high up on her head to keep it out of the water and brought a water bottle and an extra bag for after their soak. Shedding her outerwear at his seating area revealed a simple navy one-piece with a high neck and modest cut-out in the back. He was a little surprised not to see her in some cute vintage swimsuit that seemed her style instead of the kind of outfit you'd see on an athlete when swimming laps at the pool. It made sense, though, since he knew she reserved her pool time for exercise.

Her eyes lit up seeing the steam drift in from the small cutout separating the tub from the main living area, presumably to allow guests to socialize or let in the sunlight during the day. Neil had dimmed the lamps so the brightness wouldn't drift in too strongly or create a glare on the television above the tub that he'd already turned to the game.

So far, Claire didn't seem awkward about their plans, so he relaxed as she followed him to the bathroom area.

When she saw the size of his "tub," her mouth dropped open; he hadn't been exaggerating. The tub and sink made up most of the area with a separate shower and toilet around the corner. There were two seating areas at the ends and looked deep enough for her to stand up to her chest. Just getting into it required using the steps to sit on the ledge and swivel over the side to lower herself into the water. He'd shed his shirt and gotten in first, before offering her a hand as she carefully sunk into the steamy tub. She'd yelped a little and giggled when the jets came on, surprised at how loud they were and at the tickling along the base of her spine as a jet at her back puffed out a stream of gurgling water. It had been an adorable reaction.

And it took only thirty seconds for her to sink into the swirling, comfort of the jacuzzi and forget that he even existed.

With the jets on, it was really too loud for conversation, so she simply relaxed into the water taking the side below the TV so he could watch the baseball game on close caption. The water felt great and even now almost half an hour later, still steamy and soothing. The tub was wide enough and then some to accommodate her petite body. In fact, she had to fold her legs underneath her just to sit on the ledge, the tub was so deep. So instead she anchored her arms against the side and floated alongside the jets.

When Claire would kick her legs up to float close to the surface, her tiny feet poked out of the water, at times causing her to drift closer to him if he'd also let his legs stretch out. He tried ignore to her trim body underneath all that agitated water, only her shoulders sometimes visible and large bubbles popping against the distinctive moles along her collarbone. Every now and then her leg would brush his or vice versa, but since it didn't seem to bother her, he didn't let it bother him either. In fact, a few times, she'd drifted over to slide in next to him as a way to move her limbs a bit or engage in conversation over the roar of the jets.

But right now, she looked completely blissed out. It helped him not feel so bad about the awkward way he'd invited her up.

The timer on the jacuzzi turned the jets down to quarter power and the suddenly quieter space caused Claire to open her eyes.

"I thought you might have fallen asleep over there," Neil said, trying and failing not to look too amused at her drowsy expression.

"Mmm, it's a definite possibility. This is so nice. I haven't been in one of these in so long. I usually avoid the one in the gym."

Neil winced. "Yeah, petri dish of germs. I remember."

"Right." Claire drifted her legs up and close to the surface again, just short of letting her toes pop out from the water. "Hey, I heard from Dr. Mulaney at SF Muni that you're the frontrunner for taking over as Chief of Surgery when Stokes retires."

His shoulders tensed slightly at the mention of that jerk. She must have seen him at the reception. He wondered why had hadn't mentioned it until now. That she'd been talking to him irritated Neil, irrationally. "Sounds just like Mulaney to gossip."

Claire greeted his response with skepticism. As well she should. Trading gossip was probably the second most important reason to come to these conferences.

"Well, is he right?" she smirked, knowing about Neils dislike of Mulaney.

Neil rolled his eyes, but conceded. "There's been talk about it. Andrews knows I want the job and he doesn't have any more excuses now that the board isn't so squeamish about internal hires. Audrey—Dr. Lim—doesn't want it since she's pretty content with her little Trauma Unit fiefdom.

"Uh, I know who 'Audrey' is," Claire remarked. "I and most of the hospital are well aware of why you two are on a first name basis."

Too aware, if she were to ask him. That turned out to be one of the reasons he and Audrey couldn't keep things together, although he didn't regret the friendship. "Anyway," Neil said, redirecting the conversation. "I'm going for it. I think I've put in the work."

Claire nodded. "No argument here. I put my money on you that first time when Andrews ended up keeping it for himself."

His eyebrows shot up at that. "You did?"

She laughed. "Why are you so surprised?

"Well, we weren't exactly back to the good old times after you returned to my rotation."

"You mean after I fell on my sword over your stubbornness?"

Neil grinned. They'd long since buried the hatchet over that. "Yeah, right after that." That satisfied look from Claire definitely reminded him of old times. "Well, I appreciate the vote of confidence. I'm sure Shaun did too when he was handed that pot of money." The memory made her laugh.

A few moments of comfortable silence lingered as Claire readjusted herself. "I think you'll get it," she finally added. Neil let his gaze linger from the game to her face as her expression relaxed and she closed her eyes once more. Absent her scrutiny, he let himself smile over her easy confidence in him.

He returned to the television and let himself try to enjoy the play as they sixth inning made way to the seventh, groaning as the Mariners' pitcher had a terrible string of base runs before finally striking out the Orioles. The commercial break brought his attention back to Claire.

"Feel free to tell me to shut up if it's a touchy topic, but how's your mom been?"

Claire's eyes opened but at least she wasn't frowning. "She's fine actually. Still in Oakland. Still living with the same guy but refusing to marry him." She rolled her eyes, "I don't know how he puts up with her, but they seem okay and it's not my business."

"She ever come down to visit you?"

"Once. Both of them came. It was fine, but not something I wanted to make a habit. I know a lot of people don't understand, but it really isn't healthy having her in my life. Even when she's stable, the lying and drama that she seems incapable of avoiding are more than I should have to handle."

"I get it. I didn't mean to imply otherwise." The last thing he wanted to do was upset her when they were having a pretty good evening.

"Oh, it's fine. I'm good. It's actually nice to be able to talk about her like normal and not have it be weird. You know, like regular people talk about their parents."

"Well, you and I both know there's no such thing as regular." She hummed her agreement.

They slipped into silence again as the game came back on and Claire closed her eyes again in time for the jets to flip back to high.

Another twenty minutes later, and Neil had to admit that the baseball game was kind of boring. Both teams were playing badly and neither were ones he particularly rooted for. He reached for the remote and started flipping channels. Underneath the water, he felt her nudge him with her toe.

"Bored already?" she shouted over the jets, eyes cracked open as she watched him flip through the stations.

"Nah. Just looking for another game. The one on now is a bust. "She nodded and closed her eyes again.

He found another game that looked like it'd be over soon so he kept going. There were a few movies he didn't recognize and lots of prime-time shows he had never seen. His schedule didn't give him a whole lot of free time for must-see TV. A few minutes later, he stopped on one of the science channels and leaned in to get a better look at the screen.

"Hey, check this out," he said, nudging her foot with his knee and flipping down the settings on the loud jets. "It's one of those surgery shows." He grinned thinking about whatever ridiculous thing they were likely covering.

Claire responded by sinking deeper into the water. "Ugh, no thank you. I hate those terrible plastic surgery shows. They're so gross and exploitative."

"No, it's not one of those. It's one of those documentary-style ones. I'll cut off the captions. Let's see if we can guess what procedure they're doing." He knew he sounded a little too gleeful, but he actually thought it might be fun.

Intrigued, Claire sat up and attempted to steady herself against the bubbling water, no longer churning at the highest level in favor of a gentle simmer. Neil watched as she gripped the sides of the tub before swimming over to him. And it was a legitimate couple of strokes before she reached his side. She again tucked her legs underneath her and before he could move his arm from resting along the back of the rub, she reached up to grasp his shoulder to steady herself again. He noted how warm her slick hand felt against his dryer skin, only slightly damp from sitting above the water. Once she felt secure, she let go sinking as far down into the bubbling warmth as possible.

Now sitting comfortably next to him in the water, she stared at the screen with him for a while. They tilted their heads periodically and leaned in once in a while to get a better look at the surgical area.

"It's definitely something with the kidney, but why are they positioned like that?" she commented.

He nodded. "I don't know. But look, they're too far down to be cutting into the kidney proper. Kidney stones maybe?"

"Maybe," she agreed. "But why such a large incision?" They watched for a while longer, asking each other questions when the camera would show a different angle. After a few snarky criticisms, they confirmed that it was indeed kidney stone surgery.

Claire leaned against the end of the tub, ignoring his arm behind her back. "Who in the world is watching this besides other doctors?"

"You'd be surprised," Neil said. "The ratings for these shows are mystifying. It can't all be just surgeons using it as an excuse to feel better about ourselves." Claire laughed along with him at that.

Now that his attention wasn't solely on the show, he immediately noticed how close Claire sat next to him as he looked down into her grinning face. She'd propped her arm against his shoulder again to steady herself, sweat and droplets of water gleaming against her skin.

It didn't feel strange, per se. It kind of reminded him of maneuvering in the E.R., which developed its own kind of intimacy over time. As you stand shoulder to shoulder with other doctors and nurses, you have to get used to the seamless brushing of arms or sliding of fingers over a patient as you assist each other. For him and Claire, there'd also been a lot of standing at her shoulder to lean into her and gauge her performance—almost always impeccable. You learn a lot of random things about people, what kind of shampoo they use, who doesn't clean their ears regularly, all the facial ticks and emotional cues you can't hide in close quarters. He remembered all of those things about Claire, including that she'd never been able to hide anything from him, good or bad, in those bright eyes of hers.

Perhaps he'd been thinking a little too hard about their close proximity since Claire then seemed to notice how near they were, too. She dropped her arm from his shoulder to scoot farther away.

"Sorry." Embarrassment tinged her apology, sheepish about being caught that far into his personal space. "I'm having a little trouble keeping my balance. It's like a proper swimming pool in here."

"Told ya so." Neil tried to remain as casual as possible, though once the hyper-awareness of her closeness sparked, it danced over his nerves like low-level static.

She shook her head at his smugness and unfolded her legs for the trip back to her side of the tub. A bit of disappointment creeped in at that.

And the next thing he remembered was a large splash and a lot of sputtering from both of them.

The best explanation he could come up with was that instead of untangling herself to swim back over to her side, she must have shifted her body too quickly in the wrong direction, sending her flailing. She reached for the edge of the tub, but instead, found his arm still resting along the back. When her fingers slipped against his slick skin, unable to find purchase, she went sprawling backwards into the water.

"Whoa!" On extinct, Neil grabbed for her, reaching one hand around her waist. The move was quick enough to keep her head from going under, but not by much. When he pulled her up, most of her head, including the hair piled on top, streamed tiny currents of warm water along her neck and down her throat.

Overcompensating a bit, Neil held her securely at his side as she got her bearings again. "You okay?" He noticed that she was breathing heavy, her chest rising and falling as she tried to calm herself down.

"Yeah," she said, kind of laughing. "Lost my footing there." Her hair was starting to come down all around her shoulders and in her eyes.

"I couldn't tell at all." His deadpan stoked her ire as he'd hoped.

"Shut up," she said, reaching up to secure her hair again—or at least trying to since her mass of curls had decided to fight back and now lay across her shoulders and floating atop the waterline. "I'm embarrassed enough." He could see a lovely blush spread across her cheeks.

Confirming that she was okay, he chuckled. "Well, it is kind of funny." He'd barely gotten the words out when she delivered a splash of water straight to his face. "Real mature, Browne." It didn't stop him laughing in between the extra spluttering.

He wiped the water from his eyes with his free hand, still reluctant to release her from his arm's hold. When he'd cleared his vision, wiping the last of the droplets from his chin, he began helping her to push the wet heavy curls out of her face as she struggled to get it back into the tie at the top of her head. His form of help turned into tracing each stray tendril to tuck behind her ear and out of the way.

Securing the bulk of her hair behind her, she suddenly stilled in his arm. Neil heard her inhale as she finally noticed how squarely she stood in his personal space, his arm around her waist and the other stroking her cheek to catch any stray curls.

"Thanks," she said, softly. Neil could feel the whisper of her breath across he cheek. He stared into her eyes, noticing the way the corners crinkled with her smile and how they brightened when she was flushed.

He didn't let go of her. It felt like his hand was glued to her side. Nor did Claire move to distance herself from his embrace.

"No problem. I was available." He grinned and tried not to dwell on the small, wet hand that still clung loosely to his shoulder or the smoothness of her leg against his thigh.

Claire chuckled. "My hero. Who knew the bathtub could be so dangerous." He recognized that amused tone of hers, making light to create distance. And if he'd blinked in that moment, he might have missed the way her eyes flickered down to his lips; he may have hesitated enough to bring him to his senses instead of pondering the green in her eyes and the cute beauty mark above her lip. And as the moments lingered, the distance of her words never transpired. Nor did she wait for him to act as she closed the distance between them and kissed him gently, shyly, not at all what he expected.

Knowing a good thing when it floated right next to him, he was quick to reciprocate.

The kiss started softly, a tentative tasting and confirming. He traced her smile with his thumb before going back in for more. She closed her eyes then, lifting her free hand from the water to palm the side of his face. He murmured softly as she moved her fingers higher to rake through his hair. He squeezed her side where he still held her and slipped his hand up her exposed back to hold her to him.

Feeling his palm on her bare skin made her gasp, which in turn brought a satisfied grin to his lips. She went in for another taste of him, giving him a peek of her tongue as she caught his lower lip between her own. With that opening, he deepened the kiss as he tightened his arm around her and caressed her cheek. When the softness of her breasts encased in the wet swimsuit made contact with his bare chest, he shivered with desire for her.

This hadn't been on his mind when he asked her to join him for dinner the night before or when he convinced her to play hooky earlier in the day; not even when he'd invited her up to his room to relax. Yet now that he had her in his arms, it was all he could think about. The spark he hadn't known was building flared into a full-fledged fire that he was more than happy to let consume him in this moment.

Pulling back to catch his breath, he marveled at how she leaned into him, unafraid of their attraction, needing the break too, but also wanting more just as much as he did.

"I—" he tried to catch his breath, but the feel of her made concentration very difficult. "I swear I didn't plan for this when I asked you to join me in my tub." They both laughed at that. He bit into his lip to keep from swooping in again. Instead he looked into her eyes, hooded and simmering with yearning for him. He'd seen few things sexier in his life.

Claire combed her fingers through his hair again, making him close his eyes to the feel of it for a moment. She chuckled at the effect that had on him. "I know you didn't. You're a very noble gentleman."

"I try. Sometimes at least." He traced a long tress of her hair from her ear to her neck and around her shoulders to tuck it away.

"But," she added. "I can't say I mind."

His heart began to race once more at the sultry lowering of her voice. He raised an eyebrow at her frankness. "Really?" Claire shrugged.

Neil needed some leverage before she found out how much she was putty in his hands right now. "Maybe this whole time you were planning how you were going to seduce me? So devious." They swayed together lightly in the water. "So was that whole production some kind of setup?"

She giggled at his accusations. "No, embarrassingly enough, that was genuine clumsiness."

"Riiiight." He couldn't keep the grin off his face, or his hands from roaming against as much of her body as he thought he could get away with. Judging by her wandering hands—through his hair, along the back of his neck, behind his ear—she'd surrendered to what had emerged between them as easily as he had.

Claire moved both arms to encircle his neck. "I just know how to take advantage of a good opportunity when it presents itself." She leaned in to kiss him once more and he welcomed her enthusiastic lips back to his.

"Lucky us," he said against her mouth before diving in for a more thorough taste of her.

Now instead of the whirring of the jacuzzi jets, the bathroom was filled with sounds of splashing water and soft murmurs of enjoyment as they maneuvered around each other, trying to get a new angle, a more pleasurable slide of skin against skin. He flipped them around so that she leaned against the back of the tub and he stood in front of her, letting his lips and tongue glide along her moist neck as he tasted her. He'd never wander for long before her caress of his chest and back or her fingers along throat had him returning to her welcoming mouth. Claire would occasionally moan his name into his ear when he hit a particularly sensitive spot, and that really made Neil weak in the knees. Thank god for the water buoyancy.

Just as she was about to wrap her legs around him to straddle his hips, a bell sounded in the bathroom.

"Nooooo," Claire moaned, recognizing her ringtone.

"Ignore it," Neil said, kissing along her neck as she turned her head toward the sink area where they'd both left their phones.

"I can't" she said pulling away, sporting an adorable grumpy pout that made him want her even more. "I've been dodging disasters on this stupid project all week. If it's them, I need to deal with it." At least she didn't sound happy about it. In fact, whoever turned out to be on the other end of that call was about to get a taste of a really bad attitude from her.

Neil reluctantly let her go, letting his fingers caress her back as he retreated. He took her hand to steady her as she climbed out of the tub. Watching her answer her phone as she held a towel to her dripping body did give him a chance to cool his jets. Yet as her conversation lingered—and Claire's tone escalated—he admitted that he was kidding himself.

No matter how innocently it started, he much preferred to let whatever this was with them play itself out.

Claire paced in front of the sink before wandering over to lean against the edge of the tub, clearly irritated at whoever had been unlucky enough to interrupt them. Before she could launch back into her pacing, he put his arms around her waist as she talked, occasionally kissing the back of her neck to calm her and fixing her hair again. Murphy had called this kind of thing grooming behavior when they'd seen a patient and his wife doing something similar. He laughed to himself over the random thought.

As Claire fought with the other person on the phone, he wondered again how they'd gone from lounging platonically and peacefully in his huge tub to making out like teenagers in the space of a few minutes. Or had it been that fast? Had it been some kind of underlying subconscious thing simmering between them all day? He thought about his pleasure at seeing her again yesterday; the laughter they'd shared the previous night; the pleasure of her company at the beach and the feel of her in his arms as they'd danced. Upon reflection, their attraction now didn't seem so out of the blue.

Ever since they'd met, he'd placed her in the "off limits" category of his mind and had mostly stuck to that. It surprised him a little how much he'd let her seep through the cracks of him so that when she'd flipped that switch, he'd already accepted that being with her like that felt right. Not that it mattered, because now that they'd gone there, he wasn't interested in going back.

When she hung up the phone, her anger could have steamed up the room all over again. He nuzzled into her neck once more, satisfied at feeling her relax and lean into him.

"Breathing down my neck?" She startled and giggled as he hit a ticklish spot.

"It's what I do." Neil chuckled and traced his fingers against the patch of skin his lips had just explored. "Problems again?" he asked, kissing her shoulder.

"Nothing but problems with this team," she grumbled. "They need me to review a grant proposal for an extension of funding tonight. Someone missed the deadline and since I'm the principal, I need to sign off."

"So, jacuzzi time is over?" he said sadly.

She turned to him and kissed him chastely on the lips. "Afraid so."

"I hate them now."

She laughed. "That makes two of us." Pushing herself from off the tub, Claire wrapped the towel around her middle and grabbed another one for her hair. "Sorry, Neil. I know things were just getting interesting," she said, eyes full of mischief.

"That's one way to put it," he replied, lifting himself out of the tub as well.

Claire frowned. "You don't have to get out just because I'm a spoilsport."

"You've ruined the tub for me," he joked, grabbing a towel. "It'll be no fun in there without you now." He pulled her back against him and kissed her again, loving the feel of her in his arms. She'd let her hair down fully to wring out with the towel and it cascaded around her shoulders, soft against his fingers as he stroked her skin.

He wasn't ready for this to be done.

"How about this? You bring your laptop up here and I'll keep you company while you work." She looked at him skeptically. "I promise I won't distract you. I have some work I need to do too. And when we're done, well, we can see what else we have the energy to get into. Maybe you'll make it to the evening news tonight."

Claire giggled and smacked him on the shoulder as she pulled away. "Very funny." She kissed him on the cheek and his pulse jumped at the contact—and at the anxiety that she might not want to continue what they'd started. "But you do present a very decent proposal," she added cheekily. "I'll go change and grab my laptop."

Neil almost sighed in relief but tried to play it cool. "Good. I'll raid the minibar for snacks."

She scoffed as she hung one towel neatly behind the door. "They charge you so much for that stuff. Why don't you just go downstairs to the little store?" He followed her from the bathroom as she began to dress and gather her things.

"Who cares? Andrews is paying," Neil reminded her.

"Oh yeah. In that case, save me some popcorn." She smiled at him as she slid on her shoes and grabbed her room key from her tote bag. "I'll just be a minute," she said as she headed for the door.

Before she could turn the handle to leave, though, Neil pulled her back and kissed her long and slow. A little something to incentivize her, he figured.

When he'd had his fill, he opened the door for her. "That's to encourage you to hurry back." Claire took his hand and squeezed it briefly. Neil raised it to his lips and kissed that too.

"Message received." Her voice held the weighty meaning in that acknowledgement. Whatever this was, it didn't feel like a whim. As she started down the hall, she looked back over her shoulder to see him tracking her path toward the elevator, still shirtless and damp. He didn't go back inside until she'd turned the corner.

Closing the door, he leaned back on it, grinning like an idiot and rubbing at his lips that had spent the last fifteen minutes getting the sweetest workout they'd had in a long time.

TBC...


	7. Chapter 7

**_Author's Note: Another flashback!_**

* * *

 ** _Chapter Seven_**

 _Neil got that raincheck on his and Claire's coffee meeting six months later. He'd been summoned to San Diego for a meeting as a member of the California Medical Standards and Practices Committee. Specifically, he'd be spending two days at her hospital as part of an in-person task force on state surgical protocols._

 _He hadn't called her right away, a little uncomfortable about contacting her after her dying friend Kayla's request. Then it seemed silly to feel weird about having one innocent coffee with a former colleague. It didn't have to mean anything if he didn't want it to. And he honestly looked forward to seeing Claire and check in on how things were going in San Diego._

 _So, he'd emailed her about getting coffee before his meeting started, and she'd agreed. One might say she sounded excited to see him, as much as multiple exclamation points in an email could indicate that._

 _After his flight got in, he checked into his hotel and walked the five minutes to the hospital. Since he'd get there about an hour earlier than planned, he considered finding a comfortable spot where he could wait for her, maybe get the meeting materials early and spend the time going over the proposals they'd have to start discussing among the group. Sure enough, they'd had the meeting packets already set up and didn't grumble too much about giving him his materials early. On a whim, he asked where he could find Dr. Claire Browne and the receptionist directed him to the 8_ _th_ _floor. Maybe if he ran into her, they could meet up earlier and he wouldn't take too much time out of her morning._

 _Strolling out of the elevator, he hadn't sufficiently prepared himself to see her standing at the nurse's station looking over something on her tablet, completely engrossed in whatever medical mystery she needed to solve. He stood in the lobby area, observing her._

 _He hadn't seen her in person for a while and although she looked as familiar as ever, there was definitely a different air about her, something more mature. Maybe it was her attire, a thick calf-length skirt that flared out at the bottom, matched with a turtleneck underneath her standard white doctor's coat and short-heeled suede boots. Her style seemed warm and a little scholarly as opposed to the crisp trousers and bright blouses to which he'd become accustomed. She had her hair mostly down rather than braided back, her curls tamed loosely down her back and framing her face. A glossy coral shade covered her lips, currently frowning at whatever she'd discovered on her tablet._

 _At this point, he figured it best to stop staring at her lest someone call security on him._

 _He walked toward her, a grin already pulling at his lips. "Dr. Browne." Her head snapped up in a cute expression of surprise. "Hard at work, I see."_

 _Her surprise turned to pleasure as she smirked in return. "You're early, Dr. Melendez. Still trying to keep me on my toes?"_

" _Maybe," he admitted. "Actually my flight made good time in the air and I thought I'd head over early to check in on my meeting and see if you wanted to meet for coffee earlier. No pressure, if you're in the middle of things, of course."_

 _Claire glanced down at her tablet and made a few notations before locking it. "Actually, I just need to finish the last of my rounds, and I'll be good to go."_

" _Your own consults already?" he asked, impressed._

 _She shrugged. "Just a handful of low-risk patients. Getting my feet wet, really, and it mixes things up while I get my dissertation going."_

 _He'd forgotten that her program included a Ph.D. element. "How's that coming along?" If he'd had to do another graduate-level research project in the last years of his residency, it may have come close to breaking him. Claire, however, seemed unphased._

 _"It's actually not as brutal as I was expecting, thankfully. I get to piggyback on the research I'm doing in my current trial rotation, which helps a lot. Not to say that it's easy, but at least it's manageable given all of our regular surgical duties. You haven't_ _ _—" When she noticed someone behind him, she raised a finger to pause their conversation and_ stopped a nurse to update her on a discharge. "Sorry about that," she said to him after the nurse turned back around and disappeared into a room down the hall; he waved off the interruption, used to the rhythms of a bustling hospital and enjoying seeing Claire in her element. "Anyway, __you haven't turned Shaun and Morgan loose yet? I know Lim's loosened the reins on Alex a bit."_

" _Soon, but not yet. What can I say, I have a hard time letting go."_

" _So I've heard," she smirked. "Or should I say was warned by all your previous residents. 'Melendez is a great surgeon to work under, but he'll be breathing down your neck your entire residency.'"_

" _Is that what they say about me?" Neil asked, pretending to be shocked. "Pretty tame for the most part. I'll take it."_

" _It's one thing they say about you anyway." She chuckled when Neil narrowed his eyes at her. "Don't look at me like that. I'm not going to tell you what they say about you. That's how the rest of us keep that ego of yours in check."_

" _So, they say all amazing things about me? Nice." Claire shook her head at him as she checked her phone. "That's still not fair, though. Maybe coffee's on you then."_

 _Locking her phone and dropping it in her coat pocket, she turned her attention back to him. "Fine. It's a small price to pay for my discretion. But I have a couple of patients to see before then." Narrowing her eyes, she waved her stylus at him as a new idea took form. "Actually, you interested in coming with? I could use your help."_

" _Now you want my help? Unbelievable." Switching his briefcase to his other hand, he leaned casually against the high desk to stand in front of her. He still got a kick out of challenging her, amused by how annoyed she got._

 _Unlike the old days, this time Claire shrugged it off, taking a few steps past him to the patient rooms down the hall. "Suit yourself then," she threw right back at him._

 _Neil straightened, watching her retreat without any signs of slowing. Gathering his wits, he trotted in her direction to catch up. "Fine, I'll help you. But don't be surprised when I quiz you." Her expression told him to bring it on._

 _It hit him then how much he missed her. The familiar regret returned, but he pushed it back down. No use for it now._

" _First patient is Danny Ortiz. Fourteen year old that came in with an upset stomach that turned out to be appendicitis. We did an appendectomy and everything went fine. He should be set to go home later today._

 _Neil thought that sounded pretty straight forward. He wondered why she thought he'd be helpful._

 _When they walked in the room, the teen boy laying in the bed turned and smiled at Claire. He waved his hand shyly, probably a little smitten with his doctor. Like any teenager, he had his phone in one hand and a handheld game near the other on the bed next to him. A much older woman sat in the chair next to him reading a book._

 _Returning the smile, she walked up to the side of the bed, stethoscope already out to check his vitals. "Good morning, Danny." Then turning to greet the other woman in the room, she said, "Buenos dias, Senora Ortiz."_

" _Hola, Doctor Browne," the woman replied, smiling sweetly at Claire._

 _Claire began her brief exam on Danny as Neil watched on. "How are you feeling, Danny," she asked._

" _All good, Doctor Browne. Just sore like you said."_

" _Sore we can deal with." She listened to his heart and lungs as a routine precaution and then put her stethoscope away. "This is my colleague Dr. Melendez. He's giving me a hand today." Neil nodded at Danny and at who he presumed was his grandmother sitting at his side._

 _Suspicious and probably annoyed at not having Claire to himself, Danny narrowed his eyes at Neil. That amused him, although he refrained from laughing at the boy outright._

" _Okay, Danny, it looks like you'll get to go home in a few hours as long as you keep feeling fine. I'm going to need to you to rest for the next few days and take it easy for the next three weeks. That means no running around. No skateboarding. Nothing." She explained again how the surgery went and let him know he'd be fine, but that his body would need time to adjust from the trauma. "Be careful around your incision site—no baths or fiddling with that area. Just leave it alone. Your stomach might be a little upset for the next couple of days, but it should pass. If it doesn't, give me a call and we'll see what's wrong."_

" _Will you be checking on me?" he asked hopefully._

 _Claire smiled professionally. "I'll call tomorrow to see how you're doing. I promise." Danny nodded. He looked past her back to Neil._

" _Is that like your assistant or something?"_

 _Making a note on her tablet, Claire glanced back at Neil. "Dr. Melendez? Sure. For today he is." Neil raised an eyebrow at her as she flashed him a humorous look. "Actually, Dr. Melendez used to be my boss a long time ago. But today," she said, shutting off her tablet, "he's my backup translator."_

 _Danny pouted. "I thought I was your backup translator."_

 _Claire frowned apologetically. "You're right. I guess that makes Dr. Melendez my backup-backup translator."_

 _Turning to Mrs. Ortiz, she began carefully explaining everything she'd said to Danny but in Spanish. Neil waited at her side, hands in his pocket, listening and approving her explanation. When she finished explaining about the surgery, she looked up at Neil to make sure it made sense. Nodding, she continued until she got to the term "incision site" and looked to Neil to ask for the best translation, which he provided confidently and with a warm smile. It felt kind of nice to be needed, he thought to himself.  
_

" _You want to explain what I told you about what happens if something seems wrong," Claire asked Danny as a way to include him and be assured that he understood her instructions. Excited for the attention, he gave his grandmother a good overview of what Claire had said._

" _See you're a pro, Danny." The boy beamed at the praise. "I've gotta go, but I'll drop by later to check on you before you leave. Don't spend all morning on your phone. Get some rest." Tucking her tablet under her arm, she squeezed his hand and said goodbye to his grandmother as well, Neil in tow._

" _Nice to meet you," Neil said to Danny, grinning at the boy's dislike of him. "Nice to meet you too," he called over to Danny's grandmother in Spanish. She wished him the same. Neil heard her quietly chastising her grandson for being rude to the doctor as he turned the corner._

 _Neil sped up to return to Claire's side. "Your assistant?"_

 _Claire smiled but didn't look up from her tablet. "It's a good gig." He shook his head at her and looked over her shoulder at who they were visiting next._

" _This is the only other patient I need to see. The rest are scheduled for tests this morning."_

" _Isn't that your job?" Neil teased._

" _It would be." A bit of wickedness slipped into her expression, which he found delightful. "But seniority has its privileges. Like making junior residents do your lab work while the senior resident gets coffee with an old colleague." He couldn't disagree. "Next is Abraham Arturo," Claire continued. "A spry seventy-five. And by spry, I mean grumpy. Came in for a hip replacement. No complications, but a huge candidate for non-compliance once he gets to the rehab facility. He pretends not to understand my Spanish so you can be my secret weapon."_

" _Oooh, now there's an upgrade from assistant. I kinda like the idea of being a secret weapon." He grinned down at her before entering the room, noting her annoyed but accepting response._

 _True to form, Mr. Arturo proved to be a handful. As soon as Claire walked in, he started asking when he could go home since he'd already missed too many days at the senior center and his domino skills were going to get rusty. When he noticed Neil, he started ribbing Claire about bringing in reinforcements._

" _I can see you're about to get serious with me, Dr. Claire, if you picked up a Mexican ringer to help you wrangle me," he joked in Spanish._

" _A what? I didn't get that, Mr. Arturo," Claire responded, confused._

" _A ringer," Neil answered in English. "He called you out on needing backup." He shrugged, grinning. "I've been called worse."_

" _No doubt," the both of them thinking that she'd certainly called him worse herself at times. "Well, then no need for a pretense."_

 _They spent the next fifteen minutes together requesting, cajoling, and pleading with Mr. Arturo to follow all of his post-op instructions even after the week he had scheduled in rehab. Mr. Arturo tried to come up with every excuse in the book as to why he shouldn't be confined to his home, each of which they countered. Finally, they threatened that if he didn't behave himself, they'd put him on six weeks bed rest with strict instructions for his home healthcare worker to enforce. The idea of it seemed to annoy him enough to comply._

 _As they were leaving, Mr. Arturo took Claire's hand and thanked her, apologizing for being such a pain in the ass. She told him that she just wanted to make sure he got better so he could get back to beating his friends at dominoes. She promised to come see him before his discharge came through the next day._

" _You can bring your friend too," Mr. Arturo said. "Not that I don't enjoy your company, but he doesn't sound like my old gringo Catholic school teacher when he speaks Spanish to me."_

" _Don't start with me Mr. Arturo," Claire said laughing. "If you mention that 'Sister Claire bit again, I'm going to have Marisela come in here and give you a talking to."_

 _Mr. Arturo appeared legitimately terrified at the suggestion. "See, you have to come back to rescue me from these tough ladies, Doctor."_

" _Thankfully, you'll live," Claire joked. "And Dr. Melendez is very busy, so—"_

" _I'll be sure to stop by to wish you well, sir," Neil assured him."And if I can find some dominoes, we'll see which of us is the rustier on." Mr. Arturo looked overjoyed at the idea, even as Claire rolled her eyes at the both of them._

" _Good," Mr. Arturo said, settling back into the bed. "And while you're at it, tell Dr. Claire not to work so hard. She's always lurking around here. It's not good for a young person to work that much."_

 _Claire crossed her arms, clearly not pleased with their conversation. "I think I hear Marisela down the hall…" This time, he met her threat with a fixed stare until she backed down, a small grin at his concern._ _Seeing Claire in her element stoked a bit of pride for Neil. She'd become exactly the kind of doctor he'd envisioned she'd be. Smart, confident, and focused on the patient with a warmth you couldn't teach or mimic._

 _Risking her displeasure himself, Neil gave Mr. Arturo his most serious assurance. "I'll see what I can do." He winked at Claire as they turned to leave, him in the lead this time. Her annoyance had returned, but she followed him out._

" _Not a bad secret weapon, huh?" They'd returned to the long hallway and he instinctively slowed so that Claire could move in front. He'd had fun. It felt a little like old times but also really different. In a good way. The role reversal had been … interesting._

 _Claire scoffed at him. "You're alright." A smile ghosted across her lips finally. They wound their way to Claire's office so she could drop off her tablet and grab her wallet. "Besides, good help is hard to find."_

 _Neil glared down at her. "Oh, wow. Now coffee really is on you."_

TBC…


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter Eight**

The sun had barely risen when Neil's alarm went off. The sliver of gold streaking through the crack in the blinds lit the room enough to easily reach a bare arm across the bed to silence his phone's ringing chimes. After, he lay prone among the plush comforter and sheets, not willing to get up just yet. He rolled over to sprawl out among the pile of pillows strewn in every direction.

He should be taking the few quiet moments to contemplate the day. Yet all he could think about was the previous night and the impossible task of keeping the satisfied smile off his face in public.

After their soak and impromptu makeout session in his tub, Claire had indeed returned with her laptop and files, ready to tackle the project she needed to finish. He'd already set himself up on the couch with his own laptop and a list of items that needed attention. He turned the TV on for a distraction and put a barrier of snacks and their water bottles between them to stave off temptation.

They worked that way for about half an hour before he started staring at her, which she noticed but chose to ignore. That's how he spotted the string of goosebumps along her arms and offered her one of his sweatshirts. Sheepishly, she accepted, not calculating how her damp hair would seep into her shirt to cause a chill along her shoulders. And what guy could resist a woman wearing his clothes? The sweatshirt swallowed her in that adorable way befitting a lady graciously letting him stake his claim.

Surprisingly, she finished her work first, calling her colleague to ensure the team had everything they needed to file by midnight. That done, she very unfairly planted herself next to him, snuggling into his side as he finished up his overdue paperwork.

He thought they'd really turn up the heat once he stowed his laptop away, but they actually found it quite comfortable to just sit together on the couch, cuddled into each other as they watched TV. It'd been an overstimulating day for both of them, and their energy wasn't what it had been earlier in the night. He held her firmly in his embrace, tracing his fingers along her arm. She seemed to enjoy leaning into the crook of his neck and shoulder; he tried not to smile every time he'd feel her breath whisper across his skin at their close proximity. Occasionally, one of them would reach up for a kiss, which the other would happily abide. Their legs lay intertwined as they stretched them out along the couch.

Claire even stayed awake long enough to catch the evening news, if only by a small margin.

They had one more day to the conference and both had to get up early. Taking in her adorable laziness as sleepiness set in, it'd been tempting to invite her into his bed. An offer to sleep, no more. They both recognized the temptation, though, and agreed that the more sensible option involved Claire making the short trip back to her own room. In a compromise, he insisted on walking her to her door.

"I appreciate you protecting me from the perils of traveling seven floors down. Your chivalry will not be forgotten," Claire joked. He'd even insisted on carrying her bags for her too.

"Chivalry? This is a purely selfish act, I assure you." To prove his point, he took her hand and brought it to his lips for a kiss. Thankfully, the hallway was deserted, which helped them both feel a bit more relaxed being this close out in the open. They were still here in a professional capacity after all. In the elevator, he pulled her in close from behind, wrapping his arms around her and kissing the top of her head. She rested her arms along his, taking hold of his hands as they watched the buttons light up and the elevator descend.

When they reached her door, she took her bags back from him and kissed him softly on the lips. "Thanks again," she murmured. He leaned against her doorframe, reluctant to say goodnight.

He took her hand in his once more. "So maybe we should talk some more. Not right now, but ..." He didn't have the right words to frame all the things they needed to deal with, the consequences of the desire that had been ignited a few hours earlier and would not be denied. He sighed. "I just don't want to leave with things being … I don't know what I'm trying to say really," he chuckled nervously.

Claire joined him, also seeming a little awkward. "No, you're right. We should talk." She looked down for a moment and then back up at him, gaze determined as if she'd decided something. "Are you flying out tomorrow night?"

"Saturday morning, I have a committee meeting tomorrow at five, so I figured it'd be easier to do that and then get the first flight out the next day."

She smiled. "Good." She squeezed his hands. "I'm checking out tomorrow so how about after your meeting, you come over to my place for dinner. I finally pulled out my cute little grill for summer. We can hang out on my patio. And then we can talk. And maybe other things," she added slyly.

The playful yet heated way she was staring at him made him reconsider inviting her into his bed tonight.

Instead, he pretended to mull it over, drawing out the moment until she laughed and swung their joined hands to get his attention again. "I think," he said slowly, serious. "I think I might like that idea a lot."

"Good." She let her fingers slide along his, before slipping her hands reluctantly away. "Then it's settled. I'll text you the address before I go to bed, and you can swing by when you're done. It's not too far from here."

"You mentioned going to the nine o'clock lecture in the morning, but maybe you have time for a quick coffee beforehand?" The request came out as casual as he could make it rather than the desperate plea for more of her company that it was.

If she noticed, she didn't let on. "You bet. Meet you in the lobby at 8:15?"

Neil leaned down and kissed her again, a lingering, probing meshing of lips and tongues and breaths. Pulling away, he accepted that he could get used to seeing that blissful expression on Claire's face, eyes closed and savoring the taste of him. He needed to get out of there while good sense still reigned over his libido. "See you then. Good night."

Claire stepped back, pushing him gently into the hall. "Good night. I had fun today."

"Me too," Neil said. "And that's just the beginning," he winked and stepped out of her doorway, heading to the elevators. He could feel her watching his retreat until he disappeared around the corner and he heard the familiar click of her door closing.

With images of Claire dominating his thoughts, he'd fallen asleep quickly.

Now morning, Neil brought one of the fluffy pillows to his chest and hugged it to him, reminiscing about the feel of Claire in his arms. Then he flopped onto his back again to stare at the ceiling. This was getting ridiculous. He couldn't lie in bed all day fantasizing about this new and exciting fling with his former resident. It wouldn't help to pine on how brilliant and beautiful and sexy he found her now that he'd let himself admit to it; now that the distance allowed him to be free to express it. Chuckling softly, he hefted himself out of bed and into the shower.

Twenty minutes later, he headed for the elevator, briefcase in one hand and his phone in the other texting Claire. Since he'd gotten himself together and out the door well before their meeting time, he asked what kind of coffee he could get for her. She put in her request and let him know she'd meet him at the designated time, wanting to check out of her room first.

Frowning, he got a little annoyed at the crowd in the coffee shop, but chalked it up to the morning rush. There really were a lot of people in town for the convention, obviously, since they'd needed an overflow hotel. For being such an off year programming-wise, it hadn't hurt their numbers. Five minutes on the dot, he picked up his and Claire's orders and waited for her at a high top table in the corner of the café area. She'd texted him to say there was a line at the front desk and she'd be over as soon as she corrected the name on her bill that still showed her colleague.

Neil scanned his email, responding to a desperate sounding one from one of his more eager residents and accepting an invitation to a lunch meeting the following week. As he sipped his coffee, he made a note to take his car in for servicing if he didn't have any surgeries scheduled the following Saturday.

"Well, if it isn't Dr. Neil Melendez. The wonder kid."

The voice sounded familiar, although Neil had trouble placing it. Looking over his shoulder, he scowled at seeing Dr. Coyle leaning casually against the bar separating the café from the lobby.

"Dr. Coyle," Neil responded, not hostile, but certainly not friendly. Not one for picking up on subtext, Dr. Coyle reached over to shake his hand, which Neil reluctantly reciprocated.

"Should have figured you'd be at this thing. You're certainly connected. There are so many people here." He nodded toward the full café and lobby.

"I thought you shipped off to NIH?" Neil continued to scroll through his messages, hoping Coyle would get the hint and move on.

"Yeah, I did. Sweet gig. Pay's great, but it's definitely not as sexy as my West Coast travels. You know, before all that unfortunate business went down with your resident. Kalu seems to be doing alright for himself from what I saw the other day."

Back in his younger days, he'd had a hair-trigger temper that he'd learned to control in order to keep himself out of trouble. At times like these, he sort of regretted that.

"I'm sure Dr. Kalu had kind words for you." Incredibly, Coyle laughed at that.

"Nice one. No, I kept my distance. No point in stirring up old drama. Besides, the singles scene is great at these things, and I didn't need a reminder of that when I'm scoring at the bar." He looked around the lobby as if checking out his prospects at the very moment. "Anyway, that was ages ago. So, have you made chief of surgery yet or is Andrews still hoarding it like a megalomaniac?" Coyle let his eyes linger on a brunette standing in front of the cashier and then flicked his head back to Melendez.

Neil pocketed his phone, now actively annoyed. "What do you want, Coyle."

That focused Coyle's attention from the casual rambling he'd been doing up to that point. "What's eating you? Not enough coffee? I mean, you've got enough there."

"I don't understand why you're talking to me," Neil said, his irritation pretty clear. "We're not bros."

Coyle flinched. "What'd I do to you?"

"How about I trusted you with one of my residents and instead of respecting either of us, you perved on her, threatened her, and then lied about it."

In a different part of his life, he would have definitely punched Coyle by now. Maybe his newfound feelings for Claire fueled him or maybe he still felt guilty for allowing the situation between Claire and Coyle to happen in the first place and then not doing enough to support her afterward. He'd been more annoyed with Jared attacking Coyle and getting himself fired and then re-hired than the fact that a colleague had harassed his resident. That he'd presented Claire on a silver platter to be harassed by Coyle, was even worse than the fact that she hadn't felt comfortable coming to him about the situation at the first sign of discomfort.

That last part was on him and it had never sat well.

Coyle stood up and crossed his arms defensively. "So that's what she told you? You know she got around. Kalu couldn't have been the only guy she was banging at the hospital."

Disgusted, he gripped his coffee to keep from lashing out. "Yes, Dr. Kalu and Dr. Browne were exclusive. I know what my residents are up to, even if they think I'm not paying attention. And I don't care if she'd been hooking up with the entire occupational therapy department, that didn't give you the green light to intimidate her into having sex with you."

They glared at each other, Neil daring Coyle to challenge him and Coyle considering whether trying to argue his side of things made a difference.

Claire chose that moment to come strolling from the lobby, suitcase in tow and Coyle's back to her. "Hey, thanks for getting my coffee." She'd set her sights on Neil and the extra coffee on his table. "I didn't mean to be this late on the—"

Claire's happy smile at greeting Neil froze and dissolved as Coyle turned around to see who'd been talking.

"Well, speak of the devil." An unkind smile pulled at his lips at seeing Claire, oily glare sweeping her from head to toe.

"And he shall appear." Claire responded, directing at him a look that could incinerate.

Staring back and forth between Melendez and Claire, Coyle's expression changed from one of irritation to arrogant smarminess.

"Oh, I see how it is. I guess I should have just bided my time and you'd have been more than willing to hang." He looked them both up and down and smirked. "I heard you left the hospital not long after I did," he said to her. Then he turned to Neil. "And I heard you broke up with that smokin' hot fiancée of yours right around the time I got transferred. Now it all makes sense."

As Claire's shock at seeing Coyle faded, she had plenty of space to fume, both at his mere presence and at what he'd insinuated. Neil opened his mouth, ready to spill a dozen different threats, but Claire beat him to it.

"Fuck off," she said, without missing a beat. "Take your bullshit and go." Not at all intimidated, she smirked knowingly up at him. "Or was Bethesda not far enough because I can certainly suggest an even more remote exile if you're eager for other skeletons to find their way out of your closet."

Coyle pursed his lips and tensed. "Still such a little liar. But I'll go. It seems you have some skeletons of your own, so maybe you should watch your mouth." Claire stood her ground and waited for him to make good on his promise to leave.

"I realize you don't handle rejection particularly well, but Dr. Browne asked you to leave. And I suggest you listen," Neil added, not bothering to hide the veiled threat. As the moment lingered, Neil's temper rose and he wondered if this situation might devolve into a brawl in the lobby when he decked the other doctor in his smug face. If Neil wasn't so protective of his hands, there was a decent chance he'd have done it already.

Coyle must have sensed that it wasn't worth the trouble either as he broke the standoff. Scoffing, Coyle slammed a palm against the bar he'd been leaning on, rattling it and drawing a few people's attention nearby. "Dr. Browne," he said nodding to her. "Dr. Melendez," he added, refusing to make eye contact. "Fun reunion." He stalked off not waiting for a further reaction from them.

When he was finally out of sight, Claire unclenched her fist from the handle of her suitcase, eyes closed tight for a few moments as she calmed herself. Neil reached over to rub her arm and her attention snapped back to him. She smiled sadly and took the offered cup of coffee he held out.

"Forget about him," Neil said. "You weren't doing anything wrong then, and you're not now either." He could tell that the encounter had shaken her. He could have throttled Coyle for disturbing the amazing, carefree woman who'd approached him two minutes ago, ready to start her day with his company and a cup of coffee.

Claire shook her head. "I know. It's just—" She sighed. "Bad memories."

He led her around the café barrier, pulling in her suitcase and rubbing her back briefly. She tensed at his touch and looked around. Neil's heart sank.

"Hey," he said, putting some distance between him. "Don't let him get to you. He's a sad, broken man who knows that you wrought consequences to his sorry life and wants to make you hurt for it. Don't give him the satisfaction."

Lazily sipping at her coffee, she finally glanced at him, seeming to relax at whatever she saw in his expression. A weak smile met his tentative one. "Thanks, Neil."

"I don't want him to ruin our morning, so let's forget we even saw him." He took another sip from his coffee. "You get everything squared away with the room?"

Claire straightened, a few curls floating along her cheek as she tilted her head in his direction. She looked even lovelier to him today, in a professional gray suit and silky black blouse underneath. She'd pulled her hair back from her face in a loose, low ponytail, simple, yet elegant. She'd left her lips mostly untouched, only a shiny clear sheen to match the minimal makeup she wore.

Now focused back on him, she smiled more naturally at his company. That was more to Neil's liking.

"Yeah, it's all set. They just had to change the name. I didn't want accounting to get all huffy when I submit my reimbursements."

"No, you definitely don't want to get on their bad side," he confirmed. "Now tell me, what's on your schedule for the day before I get you all to myself." Claire grinned again, eyes twinkling in anticipation. They spent the rest of their time together comparing notes and making plans as they walked to the conference center together. If she kept a little more distance from him than she had in previous days, he didn't think it a good idea to comment on it.

The morning went quickly with lectures and more networking that he needed to do on Andrews' behalf. He'd made an empty promise to play golf with a senior cardiologist from one of St. Bonaventure's sister hospitals; he'd agreed to review a proposal from one of his former classmates. And he still had to find a few moments to review his notes for the committee meeting at the end of the day in between the last of the presentations he wanted to attend. The load was more than he liked on the last day of a conference, but he tried not to appear too giddy thinking of the reward that awaited him when it was all done.

Right before 4:00, he got a text from Claire saying that her last panel had just ended and she was heading out. She asked him to meet her in the courtyard before she left. He really only had a few spare minutes, but didn't want to pass up the opportunity to spend a few moments alone with her before the last push of the day.

"There you are," he called out from behind her, spotting her immediately. She turned, stress written all over her face. "Hey, what's wrong," he asked taking a seat next to her in the secluded corner of the courtyard.

"No, nothing's wrong. I just wanted to talk to you before your meeting."

"Really? Because you look and sound like something's wrong." He wanted to take her hand, and then thought better of it. In her state, he didn't think she'd take well to it. All of it gave him a bad feeling.

"I was thinking," Claire said slowly. No, he didn't like the sound of this one bit. "Maybe we should take some space from all this." She gestured between the two of them, and at the moment, seemed to have a hard time looking him in the eye.

Neil blinked, taken aback by her request. "Why?" It's the only thing he could think to ask.

Claire sighed. "After the thing with Coyle this morning—"

"Claire, forget about Coyle. He doesn't matter, least of all about anything having to do with us."

"I can't forget about Coyle. He may be an ass, but his reaction wasn't an anomaly. We need to consider what people would say about what we're doing. How it would look."

"How it would look," Neil said, trying to keep his calm, "is that two friends and colleagues are maybe exploring something more between them. Something that feels nice." He sincerely meant that and hoped she hadn't spiraled so far that she didn't recognize both their good intentions for what they were.

"Or they could say, that a resident is hooking up with her attending as a way to get a leg up."

"Claire, you said it yourself. You haven't been my resident for a long time."

"I know that," she said, frustrated at having her own point turned around on her. "But other people will just see that you used to be my boss."

"I don't care about other people's speculations." Claire raised an eyebrow at that, unbelieving. "I don't, Claire. I've had over a dozen residents at this point and no one has ever accused me of playing favorites or being inappropriate. And you've been off my rotation and at another hospital longer than when you worked with me." Frustrated, he turned more fully toward her. "I don't think most people even know we ever worked together much less would think to question the fact that we're keeping each other's company. There's nothing nefarious to attribute either of our intentions here."

Claire sighed. "Maybe people wouldn't think poorly of you. It's different for guys. But that's not true for me."

Neil tensed. "Did someone say something?" Claire startled and struggled to respond, which told him all he needed to know. "Who?" Claire shook her head, clearly upset. "Claire, who was it," he asked again, gently this time so as not to upset her further."

"Mulaney made some comment when I left my last panel—"

"Mulaney's an idiot." Neil rubbed at his temple. He should have figured that Mulaney would be buddies with Coyle and that they'd both jump at the chance to start trouble. "What did he say?"

"He didn't say anything really, just asked if I had seen you and how you were doing, like he knew something. I know it sounds stupid. But even though I've been gone and he's at another hospital, he knew enough to put two and two together. People talk, Neil. Without context and no matter if they get the facts straight. You know that. I was sleeping with Jared; there's the whole situation with Coyle, and how's it going to look for us to be seen having some kind of torrid affair?"

"Is that what you're calling this?" Neil shot back, annoyed.

"No, it's just …" She twisted her body around so that she sat in profile to him. He hated the instant distance. "Neil, I'm so unsure of how I'm feeling and that's new for me. I'm scared. And I feel … cornered by what Coyle said about us." She twisted her fingers together in her lap, nervous and tense. It's just this is all going so fast and I don't know how to process what I'm feeling. How much I want …" She shook her head, confused and overwhelmed.

Neil propped an elbow on the back of the bench, trying to figure out how to pick up the pieces of this unraveling situation. She was hurting and that hurt him too. Watching her fight with herself, a calmness settled over him. All the other stuff was noise, and this he could handle because he understood exactly what was going on with her. This thing between them felt real. It came with a weight, a welcome one for him, but right now, it overwhelmed her. Maybe it's because of the extra years or his outlook on life, but he was sure of what he felt. Confident, arrogant even as Shaun liked to rib him about.

He didn't want to push her, but he couldn't just let this go.

"What do you need, Claire."

She sat for a moment, looking at the tree branches swaying in the breeze. "I just need some space, that's all. I'm not saying no or giving up. I just need to breathe for a minute." Turning back slowly to face him. "Maybe we should hold off on dinner tonight. Just give me a little time. I'll call, I promise."

Looking around them and finding the courtyard deserted, he reached over and took her hand. Surprisingly, she let him.

"Of course, I can do that. It'll be torture," he joked. "But I'll get through it." He rubbed her palm with his thumb, hoping to soothe her and communicate that he was willing to handle her with care. "I'll miss you tonight, though. The food and the company."

She gazed into his serious face. "You won't be missing much with the food. I'm not exactly a gourmet cook." He smiled sadly at her. "But you're right about the company. I'm sorry. It feels like I'm letting you down."

He hushed her, squeezing her hand before caressing it some more. "No, you're not. You're being sure. I can be patient. Just don't pull away. Not without us talking it through. Mulaney and Coyle don't matter. They're toxic people. Only we matter and I'm ready to answer for whatever we call this between us."

Not breaking contact, she nodded, determined. "I'll call. I promise."

"Okay," he said. They sat side by side for a few more moments, trying to make sense of where they stood. Neil's emotions were all over the place too. He wanted to be hopeful. He _was_ hopeful. Yet he knew that Claire could be skittish and the ball was in her court.

Checking his watch, he noticed that he needed to get ready for his meeting. Giving her hand one last squeeze, he leaned over and kissed the top of her head, a chaste press of his lips to her crown.

"I have to go. We'll talk soon."

"We will," she promised again. He grabbed his briefcase and rose to his feet. She held onto his hand for as long as she could as he walked away. He didn't look back. He couldn't bare it.

TBC…


	9. Chapter 9

_**Author's Note: Very sorry for the delay. The whole point of writing this monster all out in advance was to avoid gaps in posting but 1) I ended up adding this chapter to even out the pace of the story and 2) my job has been very, very crazy lately.**_

 _ **Believe me, it made me sad that I've had to work the past two weekends rather than fiddle around with my stories. I'll do my best to wind this up on my regular schedule. I hope you enjoy and look forward to hearing your feedback.**_

* * *

 **Chapter Nine**

 _Neil sat in the middle of the cafeteria enjoying a peaceful lunch before surgery. He'd just finished reviewing the latest scans of the patient's chest cavity and seeing no changes switched to reviewing a journal article he'd been slowly making his way through for the past few days._

 _At risk of shattering his calm, he turned at the sound of bickering coming from the end of the food service line. Doctors Santiago and Shrestha. Rolling his eyes over his two junior residents, he went back to his article. Their sparring could be amusing, but it would likely take a turn for the dramatic before too long, if it hadn't already. As their voices got louder, he realized they were heading right for him, full cups of coffee in hand._

" _Dr. Melendez we need you to settle something for us," Santiago said, inviting himself to sit down at the table. The young doctor either didn't catch or ignored Neil's raised eyebrow at the move. Shrestha remained standing and off to the side, wisely proceeding with more caution._

" _I hope your definition of 'need' and mine are in alignment if you're interrupting my lunch," Neil warned, although his words were more humorous than biting. His good mood could weather some minor silliness from his residents._

 _Shrestha jumped in. "For the record, it's Santiago that 'needs' something settled. I don't want anything to do with this."_

 _Neil turned his attention to Santiago. "Well?"_

 _Santiago grinned at the attention, clearly pleased with whatever inquiry he'd drummed up. "I was saying that I'm clearly your favorite resident and then Phoebe is next on the list and then Shrestha." Phoebe Ellison was the third resident in their cohort who'd been assigned to Lim for the week. Neil frowned at where this seemed to be headed. He had no desire to get in the middle of their competitive squabbles. "And Shrestha here said," Santiago continued, "that you don't have favorites. But that's impossible."_

 _Somehow Neil doubted that the conversation between the two had been that succinct. And it definitely sounded like something Santiago would instigate. For better or worse, the arrogant, brash resident did remind Neil a lot of himself in those early days at the hospital—pleased with his own talent and eager to prove himself. Still, it was an annoying question and while he took a more laidback approach with his residents than some of his colleagues, he made a mental note to remind Santiago that he was his boss and not his bro._

 _Seeing both residents waiting for some sort of response from him, Neil began gathering his things. So much for peace and quiet. "Shrestha's right. I don't have favorites."_

 _Santiago groused at that. "Come on, Dr. Melendez. You try to be diplomatic, but there are definitely people that you don't like working with as much, so that must mean you have favorites. And if you have favorites, then I've gotta be at the top of the list." As if to prove the point, he flashed Neil a megawatt smile._

 _It's true that there were a few personnel he'd rather not have to deal with on a regular basis. Or at all. Jody Montez, the night nurse with the bad attitude; Teddy Wilcox in pediatrics who questions every little thing anybody does; Teresa in legal who still seems more bitter about his and Jessica's breakup than they were. That didn't mean he planned on feeding into the already weird popularity contests his residents had going._

" _Well, I don't have favorites, so you can relax and maybe focus on the surgery we have scheduled in an hour." He grabbed his half-full glass of juice and tray and left the two residents to settle the score on their own, the sound of their continued bickering fading in the distance._

* * *

 _Forty-five minutes later, Neil, Santiago, and Shrestha were scrubbing in, their earlier argument apparently forgotten. Instead, Santiago dominated the conversation with boasts about some other random accolade to stir Shrestha's jealousy. It rarely worked, Shrestha being so mild-mannered, but Neil could tell they were getting annoyed at Santiago's ribbing. Once Shrestha stopped responding, Santiago found a new target._

" _Hey, JL!" Santiago called over to the anesthesiologist. "Who's Melendez's favorite resident?"_

 _Neil continued to scrub each finger a little harder with the surgical soap, shaking his head with renewed annoyance and hoping his colleague would not indulge the exuberant resident._

 _JL looked up from the computer terminal to gauge his reaction—she wasn't on his surgery, but had been in the O.R. for the previous one and appeared to be finishing up some paperwork. Sensing his disapproval, she grinned and turned back to Santiago._

" _I'm sure Dr. Melendez doesn't pick favorites," she responded._

" _Thank you, JL" Neil said, smiling at her._

" _But," she continued, a playful glint in her eye, "if he did pick favorites, it wouldn't be you." Neil's smile turned into a scowl._

 _Santiago picked up on a potential loophole. "So, he does have a favorite."_

 _The door opened behind them to reveal Dr. Shaun Murphy holding his tablet and looking particularly animated. Good, Neil thought. A distraction to derail the current asinine discussion._

" _What is it Shaun," Neil asked, recognizing the familiar sign of positive news from his resident._

" _Amelia Forrester is awake already and responding well to external stimuli. Dr. Reznick and I will monitor her while you're in surgery." They'd done a repair for an aortic aneurysm on the young pregnant woman this morning, and it had been a stressful operation. The patient had come close to crashing twice. That she seemed to be recovering quickly bode well for her being able to take her pregnancy to term. "I thought you'd want to know right away."_

 _From what Neil could tell, it sounded more as if Shaun was eager to report it. He'd performed the intake and assessment on her by himself and had become very invested in doing a good job._

" _That's great. Take it slow with her. No food yet, just fluids." Shaun nodded, making a note in his tablet as he stepped back to leave._

 _Santiago looked up from lathering his heads in front of the faucet. "Hey, Murphy!"_

" _Don't," Neil warned, now irritated for real._

" _You're pissing him off," Shrestha warned. Santiago ignored the both of them._

" _Murphy, JL thinks Dr. Melendez has a favorite resident."_

" _That's not what she said," Neil scoffed. "How many times do I have to say that I don't have favorites?"_

" _Yes, you do," Shaun countered._

 _Shaun's quick response took Santiago by surprise, but then he cracked a grin. "It's me isn't it?"_

" _It's not you," Shaun countered. Santiago's smile fell as Shrestha chuckled next to him, putting the soap aside to rinse their hands._

 _Frowning, Santiago looked between Melendez and Shaun. "Alright, genius. Then who's his favorite?"_

 _Shaun shuffled and looked past Santiago's shoulder. "Are you counting all residents?"_

" _Whatever," Santiago said, shrugging._

 _Neil began to rinse his hands. He knew he should put a stop to the conversation, but it did pique his curiosity who Murphy thought he favored._

" _Dr. Melendez's favorite resident was Claire Browne."_

" _What?" Santiago said laughing. "Your friend in San Diego? The one who got kicked off of Melendez's rotation?"_

" _Only for a three and a half weeks," Shaun clarified._

 _It helped Neil that Shaun didn't point to anyone currently on staff. Although, bringing up Claire was the last thing he'd expected to hear._

" _I don't get it. Claire Browne didn't even finish her residency here. From where I'm standing, she couldn't have been better than you, Park, and Reznick." The reminder of Claire's dismissal rubbed Neil the wrong way. Dwelling on that clash with the hospital made him angry all over again. Not that he let on in front of his residents. "How do you figure that at all?" Santigo sounded almost offended while Shrestha seemed puzzled as well, though smart enough not to comment._

 _Undeterred as usual by any skepticism directed at him, Shaun did his mental calculation of the factors before answering. "Dr. Melendez agreed with Claire's recommendations eleven percent more often than other residents. He let her lead six percent more often."_

 _Neil thought back to those first years of Claire's and Murphy's residencies, trying to figure out if he'd favored any of the other doctors. He hadn't been perfect, but he'd been a fair boss. "Murphy, Claire had a good three months on you. And six months on Reznick and Park."_

" _These percentages control for that," Shaun explained. If he'd been another kind of personality, Shaun would have probably rolled his eyes over such an obvious detail._

 _Santiago jumped in. "You did sponsor her for the Bellman Prize."_

 _Neil scoffed. "Well, she asked." He couldn't hide his defensiveness, and that annoyed him too. "And I knew she had a shot at winning."_

" _Maybe she asked because she knew she was your favorite," JL chimed in._

" _Stop helping, JL," he fired back. She grinned at him and turned back to the computer. He must have said something to irk her recently for her to turn on him like this._

" _And," Shaun added, "Claire's patient satisfaction scores were thirty-two percent higher than the next closest resident score and—._

 _Neil cut him off. "That doesn't actually mean anything. She's an excellent doctor."_

" _We're all excellent doctors. But we had more fun when she was here." Shaun said this in his usual tone, but with a tinge of sadness at not having his friend around._

" _Well, no one's more fun than me," Santiago argued._

" _Claire was," Murphy countered, not missing a beat. Shestha and JL laughed._

" _To be fair," JL added, "Claire was everyone's favorite. She had a way with people."_

" _I'm telling you, I don't play favorites with my residents," Neil insisted._

" _You're not unfair," Shaun said, using his own brand of reassurance. "You just liked Claire more than the rest of us."_

 _Neil opened his mouth to protest and decided to let the matter drop. The more he argued, the more his colleagues insisted, it seemed. Instead he shook his head and went back to rinsing his hands to finish getting prepped for surgery. Behind him, Murphy strode out of the room and his two residents headed inside the O.R. to gear up. He spared a last parting glare at JL who smiled sweetly and shrugged._

* * *

 _No more was said about the topic during the surgery to Neil's relief. Shrestha and Santiago continued to bicker—more like Santiago goading Shrestha. Business as usual. For not the first time, he considered making a deal with Lim to pawn them off on her for a while. After a successful operation, Neil sent Santiago out to update the patient's family and then scrubbed out with Shrestha, who had fallen back to their usual thoughtful silence. He welcomed the peace given the chatter he'd endured for the past two hours._

 _Later in his office, Shrestha knocked on his door long past when their shift had ended. Neil was finishing up paperwork and looking to head out himself soon. He hoped this visit wouldn't prolong his exit plan._

" _Dr. Shrestha, what can I do for you." Shrestha lingered in front of his desk, hesitant to sit. Neil sighed and gestured toward one of the chairs._

 _Shrestha cleared their throat. "Not to bring up old debates, but I got curious and looked up Claire, uh, Dr. Browne, and I'm hoping you could maybe make an introduction."_

 _The request surprised Neil. "Why don't you ask Murphy? They're friends, you know."_

" _I know. It's more a professional introduction. So, I thought you might be more appropriate. She's doing really interesting research on the use of synthetic components to stimulate—"_

"— _to stimulate organ function and tissue regeneration. Yes, I know." He noticed the smirk on Shrestha's face before they suppressed it in the name of decorum. "Like a lot of my former residents, she keeps me updated on her work."_

" _Of course," Shrestha said diplomatically._

" _Don't go joining your colleagues on my bad side by starting up that 'favorite resident' nonsense." He knew he was being too testy. It wasn't often he found himself the butt of the joke._

" _Really, Dr. Melendez, I only mention it because I'd love to talk to her about her work … and the research residency she's in," they added carefully. This part alarmed Neil. Was Shrestha thinking of leaving? "I'm just keeping my options open. Dr. Andrews said at my evaluation that I had a lot of interests and shouldn't limit myself in considering what I want to get out of my residency."_

 _Neil leaned back in his chair, not sure what to think about the request. "That's good advice. But is there anything going on that you'd like to talk about?" They seemed to take Santiago's hyper-competitiveness and Ellison's intensity in stride, but maybe their easy acceptance was a front. "You shouldn't let Santiago get to you."_

" _Oh no, it's not that," Shrestha assured him. "I can handle him. I wouldn't have gotten this far without learning to deal with the overachieving type that can't suppress their huge egos." Their dismissive laugh seemed convincing on the point. "I really would just like to connect with Dr. Browne about her research. And I admit I'm intrigued about the stories people tell about her—getting that creepy doctor fired, getting kicked off your rotation, the piggyback heart transplant."_

" _Don't forget the titanium femur," he said, laughing about Claire's sordid reputation._

 _Shrestha seemed confused. "I thought you and Shaun did that one?"_

" _We did. But it was her idea," he admitted. She'd surely be amused that he'd finally given her credit._

" _Cool!" Shrestha said, now even more enthusiastic._

" _Now that I think about it, it'd be good for you to talk to Dr. Browne. I think you'd get along and she's got a unique perspective on residency programs. I tell you what, I'll contact her and let her know I'll connect you over email. How's that?"_

" _Perfect, thank you Dr. Melendez." Shrestha rose from the chair. "Well, I'll leave you to your work." They smiled and strolled out of his office, looking more assured than when they came in.  
_

" _See you tomorrow." He glanced at his watch as the door closed behind Shrestha. Thirty more minutes of paperwork and no more._

 _But as the minutes dragged on, his thoughts kept turning back to what everyone had said about Claire. He didn't think he played favorites. That didn't mean he hadn't done it subconsciously. Throwing down his stylus, he rubbed at his temples and decided to call it a day. Thinking back on his conversation with Dr. Shrestha, he figured that maybe if he got his request to Claire out of the way, he'd forget all about the annoying ribbing from everyone. Picking up his phone, he sent her a text asking for a favor for one of his residents. She responded right away._

'What kind of favor?' _She added a cute emoji expressing her skepticism, and it made him grin._

'Nothing too painful. Promise.'

'R u in ur office? Can I videocall? Hands r full and wanna test out new gear.'

 _Neil glanced over at his tablet stand that he used on occasion to video conference with another department or hosiptal. He hooked up his tablet and tapped a reply on his phone._

'Sure. What number?' _His screen brightened and a giant phone handle flashed signally the incoming call. On instinct, Neil smoothed his hair and checked his shirt to see if he looked presentable. He cleared his throat and hit the answer button._

" _Oh, it works!" Claire's face filled the screen and then retreated as she sat back down in her desk chair. She sounded delighted as he watched her fiddle with some settings on the tablet. Behind her, he could see the edges of the clear walls separating her office from the darkened lab. He frowned at getting a closer look at her—she didn't look so hot. Her cheeks seemed flushed and her nose a bright red. From the corner of the screen, he could see a box of tissues._

" _Wow, you look great," he joked._

" _Charming as usual, Dr. Melendez. "What was that again about a favor?" Her strained,raspy voice didn't cut the bite to her words. That's Claire for you—ready to fire that quick wit no matter the circumstances._

" _You're right," he backtracked. "I am grateful for your assistance. I'd ask how you are, but I gotta say, you sound lousy."_

" _No kidding." Claire adjusted the screen and he could see mountains of sample tubes and other equipment littering her desk along with a stack of used labels. If he had to guess, he'd say she was in the middle of prepping or breaking down an experiment. "Can you see me okay? I just got this thing and I heard some other departments have been having problems with it."_

" _I can see you fine." Claire paused on his screen, tissue in hand, and he thought maybe there was a problem with her connection after all. But then her face erupted in a loud sneeze a moment later. "Why are you at work? You look miserable, no offense. And it's not the most reassuring image for patients."_

" _Oh no. I've spent the past week at home nursing this cold. This is my first day back and prepping our equipment to sterilize for our next scheduled experiment is the only thing I'm allowed to do. Going this long without a surgery is making me very cranky so tread lightly."_

" _Duly noted," Neil deadpanned. "I won't keep you. I'm just wondering if I could connect you to one of my residents, Dr. Kai Shrestha. They're interested in your residency program and wanted to ask about your research."_

 _Claire frowned, labeling and assembling petri dishes and test tubes as they talked. "Are they having problems?"_

 _Neil thought on it. "I don't think so. They're bright but still considering specialties. And I think you'd be a good person to talk to about not getting caught up in other residents' competitiveness. They say it's not bothering them, but I can see it hitting a nerve sometimes."_

" _I can understand that. I'm happy to talk to them." Then she smirked, her eyes brightening as she paused to look at him through the camera. "After all, I was your favorite." Claire's laugh turned into a cough. She stopped for some water and went back to her sorting._

" _How did you—" Neil sighed. "Murphy."_

" _Lim, actually."_

 _Indignant, he shouted, "Lim wasn't even there! And since when are you two buddies?"_

 _How many people were talking about this now? He hated the too-small world of hospitals sometimes. Everyone became a busybody. And leave it to Audrey to be at the center of anything that involved poking fun at him. She'd have some explaining to do the next time he saw her._

 _Seeing his irritation, Claire took pity on him. "One of Lim's patients is doing their follow-up here so we were conferring. Don't worry, nobody's gossiping about you. JL told her so she'd know to crack down on the kids if they kept talking about it."_

 _Neil grinned, "'The kids?' Looks like somebody's pretending to be a grown up." Claire shrugged, smiling as she removed labels to a pile of equipment._

" _I'll give my utmost respect to your resident, I assure you. Send me their contact info and I'll reach out."_

" _I'll connect you by email in the morning." Neil leaned forward in his chair, letting the conversation linger. "So, it looks like your videoconference tech is working out okay."_

 _Claire grinned brightly on his screen. "Yeah. I've been begging for this thing for months. It'll make it easier to consult with the surgical teams when I'm in the lab. My boss didn't want to fight with the CFO about it, but now that we have it, she can't stop raving about it. I think she's just happy she doesn't have to run to the other end of the hospital every time something comes up in the surgical unit. And the split screen has made it so much easier to loop in the lab if we need to."_

 _Neil scowled at that. "Wait, you've got one of the widescreen MedX models? Andrews has been trying to get that cleared since last year. We've only got five here in rotation and they're handing them out to residents there?"_

" _Awww, are you jealous," Claire teased. "My boss called in a favor to get two of our five assigned to the clinics. And I have seniority so …"_

" _Lucky break." Her chuckles devolved into a fit of coughs again. "It's a good thing those are getting sterilized. You sure you shouldn't call it a day?"_

 _Reaching into a cart next to her desk, Claire pulled out another bin of equipment. "Your concern for the integrity of our lab is admirable." He gave her a look. "I'm just going to finish this batch and then I'm going home. An hour tops."_

" _Good. Now that that's settled. I'm getting out of here. "He shut the lid on his laptop and placed it into the briefcase leaning against the desk on the floor. "Lookout for email in the morning. And remember," he said, looking straight into the screen, "I don't have favorite residents."_

" _Of course you don't."_

 _Her tone held quite a different sentiment. Yet after spending this time with her, he couldn't quite muster the energy to fight her on it. Instead, he laughed, hearing her snicker alongside him. "Goodnight, Claire. Feel better."_

" _Thanks. Later."_

 _Seeing her hands full, he reached over to disconnect the call on his end. As the home screen reappeared, he found his gaze lingering on the now faded image of Claire, always warmed by these reconnections with her. Neil didn't play favorites, he was certain. But Murphy had been right too. Things had been more fun when Claire was around._

 _He booted down his tablet and then locked it in his drawer, grabbed his briefcase, and left for home._

 _TBC..._


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter Ten**

After leaving Claire in the courtyard, Neil tried to lock away their last conversation. For a while, he'd been successful.

Having a meeting that took up the early part of the evening turned out to be a good thing. It kept his mind from going over and over what had happened with her. One moment his near future seemed so full of promise. The memory of their kisses, the feel of her against him had felt like the most natural thing in the world to happen between them. It hadn't been a mistake or the result of being in the moment. To him it was uncomplicated.

Yet he understood how seeing Coyle could spook someone like Claire. The stakes were different for her, being at the early end of her career. He'd paid his dues. Taking a leap for what he wanted didn't hold the same risk.

And she was worth it to him. For that reason, he could give her some space.

Still, as he sat alone in his hotel room that night, he kept thinking about how only a few hours ago, she'd been lying right next to him, holding his hand and flirting with him. He tried not to check his phone every two minutes to see if he'd missed a text or call. And he definitely had to stop himself from calling her first, just to check if she was okay.

He struggled not to think about what they could be doing if their momentum hadn't gotten disrupted. He'd have arrived at her house, dinner waiting; they'd sit outside to eat, catching the sunset from her backyard. They'd open a bottle of wine and share it, finding themselves succumbing to a tipsy silliness as the night progressed. When the breeze got too chilled, they'd go back inside and snuggle into the couch with a movie or maybe just some music and more conversation. There'd be a good deal of making out, but maybe they'd choose to lay in each other's arms for the night rather than succumb to the desire that ran so strongly between them. Let the yearning linger.

The more he wallowed, the more anxious he got. It felt pretty awful.

And as the evening dragged on, he resigned himself to the fact that she wasn't going to call, at least not that night. So, he packed for his early morning flight and tried, unsuccessfully, to sleep through his sour mood. The next morning yielded no new message or sign that Claire was ready to talk. He took a cab to the airport and forced himself not to dwell on what he'd be leaving behind in San Diego.

* * *

Back in San Jose, the thought of returning to his empty house had no appeal. All the quiet and space to spin his wheels would drive him crazy.

Going straight to the gym crossed his mind, but he opted for checking in at the hospital instead. There had to be something going on there and things were sure to have piled up in his absence. Surprisingly, everything was all quiet at the usually bustling St. Bonaventure, a relief but also kind of unnerving in its own way.

On the way to his office, he heard someone calling his name and groaned to himself. The last person he wanted to talk to was Audrey Lim. Given how well she knew him, intimately at times, she had a tendency to read him like a book and he felt a little too vulnerable to be around her.

"I know you hear me, Melendez." Neil sighed and slowed down. There was also no point in trying to dodge her. It'd just make things worse in the long run.

"What are you doing here," she asked catching up to him. "I thought you had the entire weekend off? Lucky break going to that conference, although still not enough incentive for me to go anywhere near it."

"I'm just passing through to check on a few things." He tried to keep his tone casual lest she pick up on his bad mood. She made him crazy on a regular basis so who knows how long he'd be able to keep it up. "I figured it'd be quiet around here on a Saturday morning."

She followed him to his office. "Yes, it is." She sighed dramatically, "I have to admit I'm a little bored." He raised an eyebrow at that. "Okay, a lot bored. I actually came up here to see if I could get some action from the swing shift."

"Only you would go looking for more work," Neil remarked, throwing himself into his office chair.

Lim gave him a funny look. "What's eating you? Conference that bad?"

"Actually, yes." He jumped at the chance to deflect. "I don't know what happened this year, but the programming was a bust."

Lim took the bait. "Yeah, I know. It's the main reason I had Andrews take me out of contention. They put all the cool stuff on the first day and then the rest just sucked." She invited herself to sit down in one of the chairs in front of his desk, clearly looking to be entertained. "Did you have to do all of Andrews' ass-kissing for him?"

"Don't remind me," Neil said, flipping through the file someone had left on his desk. "I got stuck at the Standards and Practices committee meeting that went on for over two hours last night."

"Ouch," she said, wincing.

"No kidding. But at least I got him to make good on that bet he lost three months ago.

"Oh yeah? What'd you get?

"Full suite upgrade." He couldn't keep the satisfaction out of his expression, though, the memory of that jacuzzi tub triggered a warmth in his chest and a flush rose up into his cheeks.

"Two-room suite with full minibar and spa bathroom?" Neil nodded. "Nice. Still not enough to get me to that conference."

Neil snickered as he booted up his laptop. "I did see Raj from the Stanford clinic. He wants to change jobs already."

Lim laughed. "I told him so. I bet he's dying of boredom." Neil chuckled too. Raj had been a resident with them and was always chasing down something new and exciting. "He'll stay for a while, though, no matter what he says. Those twins aren't going to feed themselves."

Neil hummed in agreement. "That's pretty much what he said too." Putting aside a few files to look over more closely later on, he pulled up his email inbox to click through the messages. "I saw Dr. Buchanan too. Same old Benji. But his presentation was pretty good. I think he'll get some funding out of it."

"Good for him," Lim said, obviously not impressed. "No offense, but it really does sound like a drag. Did anything interesting at all happen?"

Neil's chest tightened. Coming here had been about _not_ obsessing over the interesting things that happened for him in San Diego. And he had no desire for Lim to get a whiff of that.

"Well, I saw Molly and Keisha at one of the luncheons. Somehow they were seated next to those guys from Seattle and everyone knew that would probably get out of hand. But they ended up switching out with the table next to them.

"Aww, too bad. That brawl might have made the trip worth it. It did two years ago at least. What else?"

Neil scrolled through his inbox, trying desperately not to look her in the eye. As casually as possible, he added, "I ran into Rhonda at the reception. Claire Browne was there too, subbing in for one of her colleagues. Jared Kalu brought his wife with him and they're expecting."

"Now we're talking," Lim said. "Any fireworks with Jared and Claire? Or were they being all mature. Like there's any fun in that."

He looked up when she said that, grinning. It's pretty much exactly what he'd wondered when he'd seen the two of them together.

"Unfortunately, they were annoyingly mature. But speaking of jerks, I ran into Coyle too. He acted like we were buddies. I kind of wish I'd punched him in the nose. He's still the same old creep."

"Ugh, you're kidding," Lim said, leaning in closer. "Did Claire see him? If anyone's going to punch him in the nose, it's her."

Neil winced at the memory of their confrontation, but then smiled. "She told him to fuck off. The look on his face was pretty entertaining."

Lim laughed. "Good for her." She cocked her head to the side, scrutinizing him. This was the Lim that he hated. She was like a shark and she'd clearly sniffed out some blood in the water. "So you got the chance to catch up with Claire?" It was an innocent enough question, but he didn't trust it. Besides, innocent is not a word he'd ever use to describe his old friend, rival, and lover.

His heart raced, nerves sparking at the dangerous subject. "I got to talk to her some. She's doing well."

"Hmmm," she replied, but saying nothing more.

"Okay." He didn't know what to make of her silence so decided to change the subject. "Anything interesting happen around here? I got a panicked email from Santiago, but he worked it out, I guess."

"Yeah, he did. And same old, same old around here." She dismissed it all with a wave of her hand. "I want to hear more about whatever it is you don't want to talk about. Something definitely happened down there."

"Why would you think that. Like you said, it was a boring conference." He typed a quick reply to one of the nursing staff about a change in his upcoming schedule.

Lim scrutinized him for a few moments more. "I say that because your eye is twitching. Why do you insist on acting like you're not the easiest person in the world to read?"

"Because you insist on trying to stir up things when there's nothing there."

"Oh, argumentative. Now I know you're hiding something," she said grinning. "Spill it. Did you sleep with someone?" she leaned onto his desk again. "You did, didn't you, you fox."

"No, I didn't sleep with anyone. You are so weird." He'd be lying if he tried to deny the bit of panic creeping in as she circled him like prey.

Narrowing her eyes at him again. After a few moments, she leaned back and folded her hands in her lap. "So, you're telling me that you were at the conference the entire time like a good little surgeon? Even on the second day when nothing at all worth your time was happening?" He just stared back at her. "Come on, Neil, the last time we went to that training in Sacramento, we spent a third of the time at the bar, and that stuff was actually interesting."

Neil rolled his eyes. "I may have taken off early that day. That doesn't mean there's any story to tell about it."

Lim returned to leaning on his desk. "Of course there is. I'm just going to bug you until you tell me. It's not like I'm going to spread it around." Audrey was discrete, he'd give her that. "So you played hooky that day and you …" she prompted.

He glared at her, considered falling back on stubborn silence. Yet he didn't have the energy for the pretense. "Fine. I got Dr. Browne to beg off early with me, we went to dinner, and that's it. And I didn't want to mention it because I knew you'd make a big deal out of it."

"Ha!" Lim said, excited. "I knew it."

"I didn't sleep with her. It was just dinner."

"Oh, I know you didn't. You're not grumpy because you slept with someone. You're grumpy because you didn't. No judgement."

Normally, he appreciated her good instincts. Only today wasn't a normal day. "It wasn't like that."

Sensing his darker mood, Lim eased up, turning serious. "Then tell me what it was like." Neil shook his head and closed his laptop. "I'm serious, Neil, I just want to help. Something must have happened and you're clearly tied up in knots over it, whatever 'it' is. Or isn't."

Neil leaned back in his chair, tapping his stylus against his palm. Truthfully, the situation was eating at him. Claire hadn't called—he'd checked his phone three times since he and Lim walked into his office. Every hour that passed made him more and more anxious. Maybe talking about it would help. Lim would make fun of him for sure, but she wouldn't go spreading anything around. Plus, she knew Claire fairly well too and maybe could give him some insight.

Sighing, he dropped his stylus on the desk and rubbed at his temples. "We were just two colleagues catching up. Nothing inappropriate about it. We cut out of the conference early and went to the beach, had dinner, and then hung out." His eyes got hazy thinking back on those easygoing times, only a couple of days ago. "And then out of nowhere, we just connected," he explained, looking off to the side as he tried not to remember the feel and taste of her in vivid detail like he'd done every waking hour since they'd parted.

Looking back over at Lim, he found her expression unreadable, which didn't help. "We didn't plan on anything happening between us, but when it did," a wistful smile pulled at his lips. "it felt good." Lim's eyes softened at the description, a grin creeping onto her face too. That relaxed him a little. "We were going to spend my last night there together—just dinner at her place after my meeting. But we ran into Coyle yesterday morning and …" He didn't even really know how to properly describe how it'd all gone down the drain after that.

"And Claire got spooked," Lim finished for him.

Neil looked down, trying to hide his pain over her pulling away. "Yeah. He must have said something to Mulaney who then said something to her. She was afraid that people would think she'd slept her way through her residency. It shook her, and she told me she needed space. So, I gave it to her." He rubbed at his face, feeling the lack of sleep. "She said she'd call, but …" he shrugged, checked his phone again and then tossed it back on the desk.

Lim was quiet for a while as she mulled over his story. He wondered if Claire had been right about their colleagues, including Lim, harboring reservations about them getting involved. That scared him too.

"Do you think this could go somewhere?" Lim didn't seem disapproving, only curious. "The physical distance? Your past? And yes, the fact that she was your resident at one point."

Neil answered carefully. He'd thought a lot about it last night, on the plane, in his car driving here. "I know what happened between us wasn't contrived. It felt real to me. I was excited about it and so was she. But I don't want to push her if she has doubts she needs to work through."

Lim leaned back in her chair, scrutinizing him. "Boy, you sure do have a type." Neil scowled at her. "Look, I understand where she's coming from. So, believe me when I say that pushing her is exactly what you need to do?" He looked on confused. "She doesn't need space," Lim says. "She's scared and needs assurance. Don't wait for her to call you. Let her know under no uncertain terms that you're willing to take the leap."

"I did tell her that," Neil interjected.

"That was in the moment. The more you let it linger, the more doubt is going to creep in. Don't let it."

Neil considered the woman in front of him, someone he'd known for years, loved in a strange kind of way given the ups and downs of their relationships. "Why are you being so supportive? You don't have a problem with this?" He narrowed his eyes at her. "You're not trying to sabotage me, are you?"

Lim scoffed, offended. "I can be supportive! And don't flatter yourself. You're not that special." Her words were full of teasing humor, yet also affectionate. "But seriously, you are so stressed right now. So, it must be important. And there's always been something about the two of you. It's actually kind of sweet."

He frowned. "There was never anything inappropriate between us when she worked for me."

"I know," Lim assured him. "That's not what I'm saying. What I mean is that you two strike me as very compatible, similar obstacles in life, same drive. You were like two little brilliant peas in a pod, giddy over surgeries and giggling over medical mysteries. Bickering all the time but incredibly loyal." Lim laughed. "And I've gotta admit, you'd probably make very pretty, brown babies."

Neil cracked a smile at that, reminded of Claire's friend Kayla. And Lim wasn't wrong. He'd really enjoyed working with her.

"I haven't seen you this worked up, like, ever. And I've seen a lot of you. Like a whole lot."

"Very funny." He didn't know if she meant literally or the fact that they'd known each other since their residencies and had been involved until they got tired of not being able to get on the same page with the relationship.

"I mean, I've seen all of you," she gestured with her hand up and down his body, meeting his glare. "You know, as in sex." A ghost of a smile slipped on his face at her attempts to lighten his mood.

"I get it, Audrey."

"Yes, you did." He rolled his eyes, but this time did smile fully, which seemed to satisfy her.

He slumped back into his chair causing it to sway slightly, back to being frustrated and somber. "The thing is, I'm not anxious about this; at least not about how I'm feeling. I'm pretty sure of that part. It's what she's feeling that's stressing me out. And you know Claire. She's a runner when it comes to this stuff."

"Yes, she is. But if you're willing to go to the mat for this, then don't wait for it. Isn't that what you like to say? Go get the girl," she smirked. Her phone buzzed and she pulled it out of her pocket and beamed. "Yes! A three-car pileup. This should be good." She popped up out of the seat and hurried to the door. "Don't wimp out, Neil," she called over her shoulder before running down the hall.

Neil rocked in his chair, head now swimming with his thoughts about Claire and Lim's advice. He looked at his phone again, considered calling, and then pocketed it.

There really wasn't much he could do here to distract himself without getting pulled into pitching in downstairs in the ER, so he decided to head home after all. His disordered thoughts could swim around just as chaotically there. He responded to a couple of more emails before shutting down and heading back out.

* * *

At least driving distracted him from checking his phone.

Neil felt worn down as he unlocked his front door and wandered inside, throwing his keys on the table and dropping his briefcase next to the coat closet. As he hung up his blazer, he realized he'd left his suitcase in the car, so occupied by his problems. He thought about turning around to get it and then shrugged it off, opting instead to shuffle to the refrigerator for a glass of water. As he took in the empty shelves, his weariness grew at having to get to the store today. It wasn't even 11 A.M. yet and he already felt like crawling back into bed.

All he could think about on his way over was Lim's advice to reach out to Claire. That he shouldn't give her a chance to talk herself out of whatever had sparked between them. To him, it seemed like a no-win situation. He calls her when she asked for space, and she gets spooked and pulls away. He gives her space, and she spooks herself and pulls away. He ran his fingers through his hair and slunk against his kitchen counter.

Neil hated this.

He took his phone out of his pocket and tossed it on the counter beside his glass. The black screen mocked him; he reached for it anyway. Then he pulled his hand back once more. Turning his back to the counter, he gripped the edge and stewed.

"Screw it," he said, finally. Neil grabbed the phone, unlocking it as he wandered over to the couch. He flopped down into the plush cushions and pulled up his contacts; appropriately, getting to the entry for "Claire Browne" didn't even require him to scroll down. His thumb hovered over the name. Dropping his hand to his lap, he threw his head against the back of the couch and groaned. He took a few deep breaths to calm his nerves.

He jumped at feeling the vibration coming from the phone in his lap, signally a text. Claire's name flashed onto his screen and he flicked the notification before he could even think to second guess himself.

' _You make it home ok?'_ it said.

Neil grinned. She'd called. Okay, she'd texted, but that still counted. He could barely restrain himself from punching the air before immediately calling to beg her to give them a chance.

' _Just walked thru the door_ ,' he typed out. ' _Checked in at St.B first.'_ He smiled at the rolling eyes emoji she sent in response.

He was thinking of what to say to her next when his phone buzzed again, this time signaling a call.

The surprise of seeing her name on his screen again stalled him for a moment. Then realizing he'd let two rings pass had him scrambling to answer.

"Hello?"

"Hey," she said. Even from that one word, he could tell she'd had about as restful a night as him. "I thought I'd just call instead of texting," she explained, nerves making her voice falter a bit.

"I'm glad you did."

"I'm glad you're glad," she said, shyly. Neil shifted on the couch, hesitant and nervous himself. Looking down, he considered what to say; if he should even say anything at all or simply let her talk. "I wasn't sure if you'd want to talk. I kind of made a mess of things."

Her self-doubt pulled at his heart. Confident, brilliant Claire second-guessing herself was a foreign thing. He'd shaken her world just like she had his.

"Nah." He tried for a tone that would lighten the mood. "You get to be human like the rest of us sometimes. You get to be a little scared."

"Or a lot scared." She sighed. "I shouldn't have pushed you away like that, though. I'm sorry."

"I'm still here."

He felt a bit shy himself, not sure how vulnerable he should be with her. After all, it wasn't clear why she'd called. Maybe she'd decided to cut things off before they could start? Then he took a moment to calm himself—he hadn't assumed the worst before, so why start now? She'd called. She was talking. He could work with that.

"Thanks for being braver than me." The humor in her voice couldn't hide her fear.

A weight he'd been holding lifted some. In the last 18 hours, he'd refused to doubt her interest. Resisted questioning the power of their attraction. He hadn't imagined it, and that gave him hope. Hearing her fear—hearing her fight through it—only confirmed how real their feelings were.

"I don't know about brave," he said. "I guess I've been too excited to be scared."

"Yeah?" she asked, sounding delighted. "You mean to tell me you're not even a little bit scared?"

"Of us, no, not really. We've known each other a while. Our relationship has constantly been changing over the years and I think when something more than friendship sparked with us, it surprised me. In a good way. It's so rare that life does that."

Claire laughed. "It did sneak up on us. I can't say you were on my mind before we ran into each other this week."

"Uh, that's good, I guess?" She chuckled again at his offended tone. "I'll admit this, though. I've only been scared that we won't get a chance to figure things out and whether it might lead to something we'd both enjoy exploring."

"And what about what Coyle said?"

"I don't care about Coyle." Just saying the man's name triggered his temper.

"You should, Neil. We both should. He's an ass, but it's not hard to believe that other people would make the same assumptions if they saw us together. Like Mulaney did."

This line of thought irritated Neil, even though he acknowledged the valid point she made. "Nothing even remotely inappropriate happened while you were my resident. There's nothing anyone can point to. Hell, I was seeing other people almost the entire time you were in the program—other people, mind you, that worked at this hospital."

"But not as your subordinate. That won't stop people from speculating," she argued.

"Claire, I'm honestly not worried about speculation." He took a moment to collect himself and try to think this through from her perspective. "Yes, people like to gossip. Especially salacious gossip about an attending taking advantage of a resident—"

"—or a resident sleeping her way through her residency." Claire added.

"Yeah, that too," he acknowledged. "But to anyone whose opinion even remotely matters, us being together isn't a problem. I haven't seen you in almost three years. You're in a different city and there's nothing to indicate that we've had a personal relationship of any kind. Does anyone at your hospital besides Carly even know I was your attending? The people that know here have no cause to question our relationship. And the risk of it happening isn't enough to ignore what I feel."

"And what do you feel?" she asked, quiet, perhaps trying to puzzle through her own emotions.

Without hesitation, he gave her the most honest answer he could. "I feel excited. I like that there are no expectations, just exploring this fun, new thing between us."

"It has been fun." She said it as if resigned. That made Neil smile. Lim had a point, damn her. Claire needed reassurance and he'd give it to her. They both deserved something good like this in their lives.

"I don't know. Maybe it doesn't matter anyway," Claire continued warily, filling the uncomfortable pause in conversation. "You're in San Jose, and I'm in San Diego. I know I screwed things up and wasted what could have been a nice weekend if I hadn't freaked out." Claire sighed. "I guess I owe you dinner the next time you're in town, whenever that is."

"You definitely owe me dinner," he agreed. "And I'll at least be back down in six weeks for my committee meeting. So, you're not going to get out of it easily."

"I wouldn't dream of it." They both tried to sound less frustrated than they felt at six weeks seeming so far away.

"In the meantime, we both have phones and Skype and text," he encouraged. "Don't think because you kicked me out of San Diego that you're spared hearing my wisdom on a regular basis now."

Again, her laughter warmed him. "I guess I can live with that." They let the moment linger, the silence now comfortable after such a heavy beginning. "So, what are your plans today?" she asked. "I hope someone made fun of you for coming into work first thing this morning."

"I'm sure my colleagues were marveling at my dedication." He could imagine her rolling her eyes at that. "No plans, though. I'll probably just unpack, hit the gym, get to bed early to catch up on sleep."

"I take it you didn't have the most restful night either?"

"You could say that. But that's what weekends are for. And you? What are you up to?

"I'm on call. Given how much extra work I've had to do the past few days, though, I don't think anyone will be using that option unless there's some sort of epic emergency. Everyone's had their fill of Claire's wraith this week."

Neil chuckled. "I bet."

"But I do have a few errands to run before I spend the rest of the afternoon vegging out, so I'll let you get settled back in too."

Neil wanted the conversation to last a bit longer. He'd gotten used to the loveliness of her voice and the slyness to her humor. Yet he had no reasonable excuse to keep her on the line. "Yeah, that sounds smart. If you get bored, you can always text me about suggestions for wasting time."

"Will do." He liked that they'd slipped back into that easy rapport they'd enjoyed over the past few days. It gave him hope. "So, I'll talk to you later?" Judging by the sound of her voice, that hope ran both ways between them.

"Yeah. Thanks again for reaching out. I know it couldn't have been easy. But I appreciate it."

"No problem," she said, more relaxed now. "I owed it to you."

"And dinner," he reminded her.

"And dinner," she confirmed.

"Until then." They were stalling. Lingering to savor as much of the conversation that they could. Neil realized he was grinning, a foolish look on him, but he didn't care.

Claire chuckled into the phone, probably having the same thought. "Okay, bye, Neil."

"Bye, Claire." He hit the disconnect button and rested his head on the back of the couch again in relief. Of all the ways that conversation could have gone wrong, he felt pretty good about where they'd ended up.

Over the next fifteen minutes, he ran their conversation through his head, picking apart this comment or that tone, turning every nuance over in his mind. It felt good to indulge these emotions of excitement over a new romance and the opportunities to have some fun, especially without the mystery of getting acquainted. Even though there was so much he didn't know about Claire, so much he was looking forward to discovering, the familiarity to their relationship felt really good; the possibility of becoming more intimately familiar with her felt event better.

Neil stood up from the couch. He couldn't spend all day pining; he had to actually get something done. He still needed to go to the store, get on top of his emails, and unpack. It probably meant doing laundry and cleaning up generally—that reminded him he still had to get his suitcase out of the car before settling in. Maybe he'd do the store first so he could get it out of the way. Turning back to the kitchen, he opened the pantry and retrieved three portable shopping bags he used for carrying his groceries.

Right after pushing the pantry door closed, he paused abruptly. He went back over all the things he needed to do and considered how worn out he felt from the traveling and emotional roller coaster of the last few days. The early flight hadn't helped. Perhaps he needed to reconsider his priorities.

But first, the grocery store. Plenty of time to think on everything in the car. Nodding at the choice, he downed the rest of his water and headed out the door.

TBC...


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter Eleven**

Neil balanced the heavy, grocery-filled canvas bags in his left hand as he closed the car door and pocketed his keys. He'd gone a little overboard with the shopping, he knew. Letting the conversation with Claire sink in had loosened some of his tension and an ease grew that eventually renewed his energy.

That second wind he'd gotten after climbing into his car led him first to the farmers market. And he'd come away with plenty of provisions. It'd been nice to wander among the stalls outside, weaving around the hip young professionals shopping for their organic ingredients and dodging families with kids running around begging for treats or dancing along with the band playing by the picnic area. He'd bought some homemade tamales from a vendor about the same age as him who worked with both her mother and daughter to serve the market each week. They'd all chatted for a while before other customers demanded their attention.

His mind wandered, as it had all morning, to Claire. Would she have picked the same vegetables he did? What had she planned for their dinner last night? And what kind of cook was she anyway—would she order him out of her kitchen or would they work side by side to put a meal together? He couldn't wait to find out.

Smiling at the memory, Neil looked toward the trunk and chastised himself for again forgetting his suitcase. He considered grabbing it, but then thought better of it. Instead he redistributed the bags and checked the door handle to make sure he'd locked the car.

He'd been too preoccupied before, but looking around now, he took a moment to enjoy the leisurely Saturday. The sounds of a quiet neighborhood greeted him when he glanced down the block. The sun was out, a breeze played in the trees, and he had high hopes for a satisfying end of the day. He took one last deep breath and headed up the entryway.

Things were going to be okay.

A cool sensation against his thigh snapped him out of his musings. Adjusting his bags once again, he stood on the porch hoping the dampness he felt against his leg wasn't something leaking. That'd be just his luck if something got smashed or burst in transport. The tomatoes had been on top, hadn't they? He'd checked them before getting in the car. It wouldn't be the biggest deal-breaker for his plans if they couldn't be salvaged, he supposed. Not something to get upset about, everything else notwithstanding. His mind raced with alternative plans for dinner, but before he could investigate further, his head snapped up at the sound of the door opening.

Standing in front of him: the shocked and beautiful gaze of Claire Browne.

Her adorable, bewildered expression caused his heart to race at the sight of her, and he made a mental note to surprise her more often. And his shy grin had just as much to do with watching the emotions play across her face as the embarrassment over his own rambling thoughts after he'd rung her doorbell and waited for her to appear.

* * *

After they'd hung up earlier this morning, he'd had every intention of getting on with his day—run some errands and maybe catch up on sleep. He'd driven along the streets of his neighborhood trying to focus on what he might put off until tomorrow while he spent the day recovering from such a tiring past few days. He made every argument for getting back to his routine. Yet, every mile woke him up a little more to the possibilities of the day. The farther he got from home, the more his mind returned to the reality of having a free weekend ahead of him and a scared but amazing woman willing to give them a shot—or at least not opposed to it. His heart felt full of feelings he couldn't seem to bind with practical notions of how to move forward.

With everything laid out in front of him, the only remedy he could accept involved getting on the first flight back to San Diego.

But first, he had to pick up some supplies. If the new plan meant wooing Claire into following through on both their feelings, he couldn't show up empty handed. That's when he passed a farmer's market close to the hospital and decided that would satisfy his plans quite nicely. And it had the added bonus of being on the way to the airport.

He'd been a little sloppy with re-packing everything in the airport parking garage, which had drawn the attention later of a cranky TSA agent. He'd kept his calm as the agent called over a supervisor and they questioned his travel plans. It's not like he'd tried to bring any liquids through or had plans to leave the state with a bounty of produce. Turns out, the 'I'm wooing a woman with dinner' excuse happened pretty often, so they let him through. As he wished the agents a good day, he vowed not to let that bit of grumpiness sour his mood.

Besides, all his fretting leaned toward hoping Claire didn't freak out on him when he showed up at her house unannounced.

Every moment of his trip he wondered if he'd chosen the right tactic. Hadn't he just told Lim he didn't want to spook her by being too pushy? But he hadn't imagined her disappointment when they realized their raincheck on dinner wouldn't be for at least another six weeks. He hadn't only been trying to lift her spirits in suggesting they'd get along just fine between phone calls, texts, and video chatting. But it could be better than that couldn't it? just thinking about her made his heart pound as he fought the urge to laugh in wonder every five minutes. Surely, the woman sitting next to him on the plane thought he'd gone insane. As far as Neil could reason, he simply wanted to savor the discovery of something that felt nice with someone whose company he'd always enjoyed, even more so now that they'd agreed there could be more between them.

And that's how he found himself on Claire's doorstep, her eyes agog, a smirk on his face, and a couple of steaks from the farmer's market butcher hopefully not dripping all over the porch.

"Surprise?" He laced the greeting with as much charm as he thought he could get away with.

Claire blinked once. Twice. A smile pulled at her lips. "No kidding," she said finally, shoulders relaxing as she let out the breath she'd been holding.

At least he'd been lucky enough to catch her at home and relaxed. She was in jeans, hair piled messily at the top of her head, curls poking out here and there. Her bare, tanned feet, sporting a cute hot pink pedicure, stood out against the light Spanish tile in her foyer. But the sexiest thing he hadn't thought to imagine was the sight of her in his sweatshirt that he'd forgotten he'd left behind with her. It did all kinds of things to his already attuned desire for her.

She continued to stare at him, first his face, then past him to the rental car in the driveway and the canvas bags in his hand. It's as if there were too many thoughts swimming around in her mind, all fighting to get out and none succeeding.

"Are you gonna let me in?" Neil schooled a more conciliatory expression on his face, mostly playful, with a little bit of apprehension over her answer.

She narrowed her eyes at him, contemplating her options it seemed. "I haven't decided yet."

Neil raised an eyebrow at that. "Well, you better hurry before these steaks go bad."

Another smile teased at her lips and she stepped aside to let him in.

He only made it a few steps before he slowed and let her lead him further into her little cottage home. Right away, it seemed cozy, warm; everything he thought her personal space would resemble. She'd painted the walls a calming blue and a few modest pieces of artwork lined the hallway. His loafers tapped lightly against the tiled floor as she silently preceded him into a more open space. They passed a small sitting room on the left that seemed to double as an office. Farther down, a little hallway appeared to lead to the bedrooms and bathroom judging by the multiple doors he glimpsed as they passed by.

The end of the passageway opened up into a kitchen on one side and a den on the other. She had a guitar propped up against the couch next to an end table with a mug resting atop a coaster. The sliding glass doors straight ahead led to a patio with a lovely elevated view of the neighborhood. From what he could see, she had a modest furniture set out there along with a tiny grill and a hammock strung between two poles. Trees lined the yard offering a bit of privacy and it even looked like she had a small garden, a beautiful and well-maintained little patch of color.

He loved being here already.

Turning his attention back to Claire, he followed her to the kitchen area and set the bags on the counter. He made to unpack them but thought better of it when he caught her skeptical expression.

"So, are you going to tell me what you're doing here or just continue to make yourself at home?"

At least he had the good sense to look sheepish about such a presumptive move on his part, and her expression softened. Then he smiled a little wickedly. "You did tell me I had a standing invitation for dinner when I'm in town. And it looks like I'm in town this weekend. You forget already?" he asked, tilting his head to challenge her.

Shaking her head, she leaned against the breakfast bar and crossed her arms. "I didn't think it'd be today! I thought you'd have some meeting or something and we'd hang out."

"You want me to go?" he asked, trying to sound as neutral as possible.

This is when the doubt started to creep in. She seemed happy to see him, shocked but happy. After their talk, she wouldn't send him packing would she? Not for just showing up out of the blue and waltzing into her house, bags in hand; brazenly staking his claim into her personal life and practically daring her to kick-start their relationship?

Okay, maybe he was in a little bit of trouble.

"I know it's a spur of the moment thing," he pleaded. "If it's any consolation, the TSA people were completely confused too. I mean, I show up with very little luggage and these bags of groceries and they even called a supervisor over to check the scanner." Apparently, as his nerves grew, so did his rambling. "Then the woman sitting next to me gave me these funny looks that I didn't appreciate until I called her out for snooping into my things—"

So distracted, he startled at her laughter.

"Okay, okay! I can practically see the nervous sweat dripping down your face. Do we need to get a nurse in here to wipe your brow?" She reached up to check said area for any moisture, and then cupped his cheek warmly. "That's what you get for surprising a girl with your romantic gestures."

"Something tells me I better learn how to not keep falling for your innocent act. So mean." He let his fingers slide alongside hers until he held her hand in a loose grip. "Come here. I've got another romantic gesture for you that I hope goes over a little more smoothly."

Tugging slightly at her arm, she willingly enough took a step closer to him and he wasted no time pulling her into his embrace. Lowering his head to meet her lips, he showed her what sweet revenge for teasing him felt like.

The kiss started slow, languid and testing. Neil closed his eyes, savoring the taste of her—coffee and a slightly sweet lip balm. She carefully maneuvered him until he felt the counter against his back. With the extra support, she moved her hands up his arms and along his chest to finally settle gently on his shoulders. His heart pounded louder in his ears when she deepened their kiss, closing the narrow space between them. The shift of air against his chin from her breaths tickled at his skin, making him smile against her lips.

Keeping one arm around her back, he opened his eyes to pull away and trace his fingers along her cheek. He caressed the softness of her lower lip as it stretched into a satisfied smile. "Does that mean I can stay?"

Claire encircled his neck, fingers brushing the nape and giving him a particular kind of chill. It also gave him an excuse to urge her closer still into his arms as he lazily explored the curves of her back. "Depends on what's in the bags." They both laughed. "I can't believe you're here," she muttered into his shoulder. "This is a very bold move, Neil.

Glancing out the window, he considered how to answer that without sounding like a jerk, letting his eyes settle on her expectant ones. "What can I say? I'm really into this. Really into you. I thought I'd take a chance on giving us the weekend we both wanted." She couldn't hide the tiny gasp at his words, and judging by the smoldering looks they were exchanging, they could both appreciate the sentiment.

Shaking her head out of their daze, Claire took a small step back, putting space between them, but only just. "So, the plan was that you'd fly down here, cook for me, sweep me off my feet?"

"I thought you were making _me_ dinner," he questioned, straight-faced.

"Oh!" Incredulous, Claire took another step back, remaining in his embrace. "Is that what you thought?" He laughed along with her. Reluctantly, he let her go to dig through his bags and show her what he'd brought.

"Steaks," he reported, pulling out two nice strip steaks that he was pleased to see hadn't leaked all over the place. "Veggies." He pulled out his unscathed tomatoes, asparagus, peppers, onions, mushrooms, and eggplant. Yeah, he'd gone a little overboard.

"Did you bring the whole garden with you?" Claire asked trying to peek inside the bag to see what was left.

"It's good to have options, and everything looked great at the farmer's market this morning."

Claire brightened. "Oooh, did you go to the one by the hospital?" Neil nodded. "I love that one. They have the best pies. And that one tamale stand …"

Neil grinned and switched to the other bag on the counter. He pulled out a package of wrapped tamales with flourish. Her eyes lit up and she kissed him on the cheek before grabbing the bundle from him. She took a deep inhale and sighed.

"Don't get too excited yet." He tried to sound stern, although secretly, her enthusiasm delighted him. "Judging by that kid-sized grill you have out there, it might be all we have ready to eat. We're going to have to prioritize."

Claire shook her head. "You mean YOU are going to have to prioritize because I am not cooking all of that." She gestured to the growing collection of vegetables on her counter.

Neil paused to elbow her in the side before moving on. "It's not _that_ much and we don't have to eat it all today. Let's see, we've got some potatoes if you want that." He put those aside. "And for dessert…" he pulled out a huge carton of strawberries from the farmers market.

"They're beautiful." Neil grinned, pleased with himself over how appetizing they looked. "Don't get too excited yet," she said mocking him. "I'll opt for something I'm not allergic to." His face fell, and Claire giggled and patted him on the shoulder "A for effort though."

"I take it that if I want to kiss you later, I probably shouldn't have any either?"

Claire shook her head no, at least looking sad for him about it. "Not unless you want to brush and gargle extensively beforehand to be on the safe side."

"So, what had you been planning to make us for dinner last night," Neil asked, curious if she would have done better.

Claire moved into the kitchen and started removing containers and utensils from the cupboard and drawers. "Honestly, I was gonna wing it."

"I'm not surprised." Neil slipped into the kitchen beside her, taking a plate and a large knife over to the area with the cutting board. "So we were gonna have dinner, hang out…"

Moving behind him, she grabbed a second cutting board and placed it in a free space along the counter next to him. She took as many of the vegetables as she could carry to the sink to wash, but threw the onion over to him to get started. He glared at her but placed it on his cutting board before scooting her over at the sink to wash his hands quickly.

"I'm sure you would have wanted to 'talk," she teased, exaggerating her air quotes around the word.

"Nothing wrong with talking." Neil started on the onion while Claire worked on rinsing the other vegetables and setting them aside. They worked comfortably and when he was done slicing the onion, sniffling only a little, he placed them on a serving tray and moved on to the eggplant. Claire joined him at the counter to start adding to the growing pile of chopped vegetables.

He spent a few moments admiring the focus she put into simply slicing and chopping the items in front of her. Seeing her in this context made him wonder so many things about her domestic life. It hadn't really crossed his mind before, yet he found himself imagining her baking cookies or making coffee on a weekend morning before strumming at her guitar into the afternoon. Once again, he considered himself lucky to see a new side to her.

"I just want you to know," he said, breaking the silence, "that nobody would expect us to have all the answers now." He kept his tone casual and continued to work alongside her. "I want to spend time with you. Sure, that might mean talking about stuff sometimes or just, you know, random conversation." Claire's motions seemed to get even more intense as she carefully sliced the peppers. "Or I could teach you how to dance some more." That got a smile out of her.

"We can geek out about the crazy surgeries we're doing?" she contributed.

"Of course. And we can be there for each other when we lose a patient." Claire paused her chopping, only a beat, but he noticed it. Before he could stop himself, he said, "I want to get to know new things about you."

"Neil, that's…" She rested her knife against the cutting board and tried a few times to direct her attention to him, not quite meeting his eyes.

Without meaning too, it seemed he'd gone from reassurance to overwhelming her. Yet he couldn't regret sharing his thoughts and letting her decide whether it was too much. He hoped she chose to be in this together with him, but if not, it wouldn't be because he didn't try hard enough.

She sighed, picking up her knife again, gripping it as carefully as she would a scalpel during surgery. Finally, she did look over to him and held his gaze before responding again. "You're amazing." She laughed and shook her head, resuming her slicing.

He went back to his task as well. "I know," he replied, and she full out cackled at his boast. Hearing her laughter calmed his nerves, almost distracting him from the anxiety of still not knowing what she thought of all this. "I guess the question is whether this kind of thing we're doing now is something you'd want to fit into your life."

Claire was silent for long moments. Neil didn't want to rush her, though. There was a time for assurance and action, and a time for space. A compromise.

"Honestly, I don't know. But you make a good case for trying to figure it out."

Hearing that brought some relief. Neil hesitated for a moment before asking what he really wanted to know, though. "Claire, what finally made you call me this morning—or text I should say? I mean, I'm so glad you did, but I'm curious."

"I said I would," she replied, a recognizable determination in her voice. "Call you, that is. And … and I know my fear hurt you and I didn't want to sit with that any longer."

"I wasn't hurt."

"But I—"

"I wasn't. Disappointed, yes, but you didn't hurt me. I get it. There's a lot to take in."

Claire sighed. "It's just that seeing Jared and Coyle, even seeing you again? It got to be too overwhelming. I wanted it to be easy. We fell into this so naturally before I even realized it was happening. But then all of these complications got thrown in. My instinct is to run so I did."

"And now?"

"I remembered something you told me once. Your 'Hamilton' speech I call it. It was back during that first surgery with Morgan and she'd managed to rile me up and make me question what kind of doctor I needed to be. What kind of person. And then there you were telling me I'm special. Warning me not to 'wait for it' and to 'rise up' and fight for what I deserve. I thought, even though I'm terrified about these feelings I have and where they might lead, it's not nearly as scary as never seeing you look at me the way you did the last time I saw you, even after I disappointed you. I knew I needed to return the favor. Let you know that to me, you're different and you're special. And I want us to figure out whatever this is together."

She recounted all this while slowly working her cutting board, slicing and discarding her items onto their shared serving tray until she stopped entirely. They stood side by side, both still, sorting out their feelings and how to respond. Neil didn't know what to say. It was his turn to be overwhelmed by her honesty. Overwhelmed with relief. With happiness. With a similar fear. And with hope and satisfaction that they were doing the right thing.

When he'd recovered, he smiled softly at her, moved. "We don't need to label anything," he assured her. "Just …" he hesitated, not sure if the things running through his mind were the right things to say. "Let's just keep it simple and take things slow." It's not all he wanted, but he could live with it.

"Yeah." She resumed her chopping once more. "Yeah, we can do this," she added with more conviction.

"We can," he agreed, joining in on her enthusiasm.

Claire chuckled. "You're not getting out of cooking all these vegetables, though." She placed the last of her peppers on the serving platter alongside the sliced tomatoes she'd finished earlier. Wiping her hands on a dishtowel she'd laid between them, she pulled at his shirt to get his attention. "Since it'd be a bad first date if you tried to kill me with those strawberries, we'll have to think of something else for dessert."

"You have something in mind," he asked, watching how her eyes fixed on him.

She shrugged. "I have a few ideas. Now come here."

His smile widened as he let himself be guided to her waiting lips, an almost chaste, slow taste of each other by comparison to what they'd done earlier. When she was done with him, she nudged him back toward the eggplant he still needed to finish.

"Now I have ideas too. All in good time, though." He winked at her, laying down his knife and wiping his hands on the dish towel. "Let's get started on lighting this baby grill, shall we." When she smacked him on the shoulder, he laughed but caught her hand and kissed it before heading towards the sliding glass door.

Looking out into the clear sky and then back into the bright eyes of this beautiful woman who made him feel so alive, he again counted himself among the lucky ones.

TBC...


	12. Chapter 12

_**Author's Note: I can't believe we made it to the end. But at least we're going out on a nice, long chapter. This was such a fun story to write, and thanks so much for hanging in there with me. I hope you enjoyed it and feel free to share any feedback or general thoughts.  
**_

 **Chapter Twelve**

 _Neil pushed the up button on the elevator, then tapped it again as if that would make it come quicker. Checking his watch, he frowned at how late it had gotten. His duffel bag had started to dig into his shoulder and he regretted not packing it as well as he should have this morning. But he'd been in a rush and didn't want to miss his flight. Hitting so much traffic after landing hadn't helped either. He'd been anxious all week about this trip and would be glad when he could finally relax._

 _Thankfully, he didn't think any of the delays or annoyances had ruined his evening plans, it just meant the day hadn't gone as he'd expected. The most important thing, he reminded himself, was that he'd finally wrapped up all his work obligations for the week. And managing to get an entire weekend away from the hospital meant he now wanted things to go smoothly so he could start focusing on unwinding._ _He'd thought about calling Claire to let her know about the small adjustment to his timing, but figured he'd see her soon enough. She'd likely be wrapping up by now, and he couldn't wait to show her how much he'd missed her. The possibility of her being annoyed with his tardiness seemed a barrier he could overcome by being extra attentive for the rest of the night—which he'd planned on doing anyway._

 _The elevator arrived, and as he entered, he briefly wondered if he should have stuck to his original plan. He did have business in her building in the form of doing a final sign-out at the K-Unit while he was in the area. The idea had been to handle that business first, then get Claire. He hoped she didn't mind if he picked her up first so they could pass by the K-Unit together. At this point, he was so behind schedule, it shouldn't be a problem._

 _Exiting on the 8th Floor, he headed toward Claire's lab, nodding to the few people he recognized along the way. Since he didn't really come by here to see Claire, preferring to meet her at the house, the staff were more politely familiar than friendly. Sometimes, if Claire accompanied him, they'd perk up, even making her laugh by teasing him for being a hotshot surgeon gracing their humble unit with his presence. Of course, they loved her here and he'd take a little ribbing as a sign of their affection._

 _Since it was a little after five o'clock on a Friday, Claire's lab had mostly emptied out. He saw her colleague Dr. Kapoor focused very intently on the spread of reports that littered her desk. Toward the back, two lab assistants were cleaning, probably preparing to shut things down for the day. Heading left, Neil found Claire where he expected to—staring intently at her computer screen as she rallied to finish up her paperwork before the end of the day._

 _"You still working on your staff reviews, slowpoke?" He dropped his duffel bag next to her desk and ignored a sharp glare from her by kissing her cheek, letting his lips hover and brush along her brow as he wrapped his arms around her from behind. Not able to help himself, he planted another lingering kiss on the side of her neck, massaging her shoulders after pulling away. He couldn't wait to get her all to himself. "My department finished up last month."_

 _"Good for you. So you decided to mosey all the way down here to rub it in?" Despite her cutting words, her amused eyes greeted him warmly as she twisted her head up to kiss him briefly but soundly. She saved what she'd been working on and pulled up her email, frowning at the five new messages in her inbox. "And my reviews aren't due until next week so I'm right on track. In fact, I'm just double checking my work before I submit ... since I finished them three days ago." She tilted her head back to smirk up at him, patting his hand as if she felt sorry for him._

 _"Aren't you the teacher's pet," Neil teased._

 _"You would know," she shot back, grinning as she deleted two of the emails and opened the next one. "Your flight got in okay?"_

 _"Fine. It's the traffic that killed me." Neil set his briefcase down on the empty chair next to her and then sat sideways on the edge of her desk. "I ran a little late so I figured I'd come down here to pull you away from whatever it is that you're doing here and then you can run by the K-Unit with me. Is that okay?" It seemed wiser to get her buy-in with the altered plan, especially given how grumpy she'd been lately at the end of these long weeks.  
_

 _"That sounds nice. Let me just finish answering this last email and we can get out of here. I can't wait to have a whole weekend to ourselves without one of us being on call or some emergency coming up. We haven't managed that in a while, and it's making me very cranky."_

 _"You, cranky? I don't believe it." His exaggerated tone prompted a light smack against his thigh, a smile revealing her to be in on the joke as well._

 _As she typed away, he spotted her work bag on the floor and picked it up to place in front of his on the chair. He walked her empty mug over to the break room next door and rinsed it out for her. When he got back, she'd finished her email and was shutting down documents and programs and then gathering papers as her computer powered down. Neil eyed her carefully, noting how tired she looked. Maybe he'd suggest they get to bed early. But he'd have to do it in a careful way so as not to suggest that she needed the rest because she looked awful. And to him, she didn't look bad, just tired. Especially after a long stretch of not seeing her, no one else in the entire world was more beautiful to him._

 _Claire stood at her chair and looked around, assessing whether she'd forgotten anything. While she was distracted, Neil grabbed both their bags and waited patiently by the entrance to her office. "Alright, let's head out. I've been in and out of the lab all day. I'm starving and my comfy new lounge chair is calling my name," she declared._

 _Before he could comment on that, she'd joined him at the doorway to her office and waved goodbye to the two techs in the back, telling them they shouldn't stay too late. She also popped her head into Dr. Kaoor's office and wished her goodnight. Dr. Kapoor waved absently and went back to her work._

 _"She's on deadline," Claire explained as they exited the lab area and continued down the hall to the west end elevator bank._

 _He looked down at her with brow furrowed, trying to assess how exhausted she really was. She'd been working so much lately. Too much if you asked him. Their pace was leisurely, maybe a little slower than usual. She hadn't complained about him carrying her bag, which surprised him. His concern sharpened._

 _"Stop brooding," Claire said._

 _His surprise turned to amusement that she'd noticed his subtle examination. "I'm not brooding. Just wondering why you've been so busy today?"_

 _Claire glanced briefly at him and shook her head, not convinced. "I had a consult that turned into a minor emergency. So I was back and forth to the trauma unit in addition to helping the new residents set up an experiment we need to run over the weekend. They'll be monitoring it, but I wanted to make sure they hadn't screwed anything up."_

 _"That's … a lot, " Neil agreed. He almost said more, then thought better of it. "Based on the last time we talked, I thought you'd be in the lab doing paperwork all day."_

 _"You and me both. But at least we have the weekend to relax." Smiling up at him, she waited until she sensed him backing down before hitting the button for the elevator. A few minutes later, they were on the second floor strolling toward the K-Unit._

 _"I hope Tanya doesn't mind that I'm technically late at this point," Neil said. "I'm in enough trouble with her as it is."_

 _Laughing, Claire elbowed him gently. "You shouldn't have forgotten to return your paperwork the last time you were here. You know what a stickler she is for protocol. I know you're not used to that back up in your gilded tower, but some of us have to follow the rules."_

 _"Very funny," Neil said. "Just, put in a good word for me when you see her around."_

 _"I'll think about it." She offered another patronizing pat and opened the door to the K-Unit._

 _Sure enough, Tanya sat at the desk in the foyer, greeting them with a raised eyebrow for Neil and dramatically checking her watch. Claire chuckled next to him and he sheepishly reached into his briefcase to produce the paperwork she'd been hounding him about._

 _Neil gave her his most charming smile. "Am I out of the doghouse?" Claire rolled her eyes and went over to the corner to sit down and get comfortable as they finished their business, pulling out her phone and scrolling through something of interest. There was no way he was getting out of here without a long dressing down from Tanya and they both knew it._

 _Tanya looked over the documents, meticulously checking for any errors. She went through it twice, probably to torture him. Finally, she filed away the papers in a desk drawer and turned back to him with crossed her arms. "I think I'll ask Ari what she thinks. It's her call."_

 _Walking over to the bright, open room to her right, she leaned in and scanned the area until she found who she was looking for. "Hey Ari, guess who's here and finally turned in his homework."_

 _He heard a shuffling before quick footsteps halted at the threshold, revealing a curious head poking out to see who'd arrived._

 _Ari looked him over and sighed. "Daddy? You in trouble again?"_

 _His daughter surely meant to reprimand him with that stern little face of hers. Yet it only filled him with a familiar, overwhelming love. Her dark eyes narrowed on him, made less menacing by the cute coils of hair that had escaped her ponytail and clung to her cheek. She looked flushed, probably interrupted from an afternoon of active play. He cherished these moments of seeing her personality come out, this brilliant three year old little spitfire who was the best of himself and Claire._

 _The proper response to his beautiful Ariella Ruby Melendez could only be contrition._

 _"I am a little bit, mijita. I'll do better next time."_

 _Ari nodded with approval and popped all the way out of the playroom and into the foyer. "You were gone so long at your con-verse, Daddy. It was forever." Claire had dressed her in the t-shirt with the bears playing baseball that Ari adored. It was his favorite too._

 _"That's 'conference' sweetheart, and yes it felt like forever because I missed you and Mama so much." He held out his arms to her and beamed as she skipped towards him. But when Ari spotted her mother in the corner, her face lit up and she changed her trajectory and flew to Claire, ponytail streaking along behind her in a mess of soft curls. She hopped up on the chair beside Claire and leaned in to be hugged._

 _"Mama! You're here! And you brought Ady!"_

 _Neil glanced at Tanya who shrugged. "Ari, no hug for me? You just saw your mom this morning, but I've been gone all week. That's five whole days. And I brought you presents!" he pleaded, pointing at the duffel bag at his feet. He feigned the saddest look he could muster as if he'd break out in tears any moment. No fool, Ari eyed him suspiciously, but climbed down to give him a quick hug. Neil leaned down to kiss the top of her head and then sent her back to Claire._

 _"Sorry, Daddy. But it's Mama. And she brought Ady!"_

 _Gently as she'd been taught, she leaned back into Claire and laid her head on Claire's very round, heavy stomach. Another gift she was giving him, this time a little boy they would proudly name Adrian Luis Melendez. In fact, her due date was quickly approaching and after today, she'd start her maternity leave. Her doctor hadn't exactly ordered her to bed rest, but certainly she'd suggested taking it easy before the baby arrived._

 _They'd thought Ari would have a problem adjusting to the idea of a new brother or sister, but all her friends had siblings and she'd taken to the idea of it quite enthusiastically. Thus, as soon as Claire began to show, she'd insisted on treating her little brother as if he'd already arrived. Even though she knew that Adrian had to hang out in her mother's stomach until he was ready, she still thought it hilarious to pretend as if Claire had a choice on whether she'd bring him on their little adventures together._

 _Looking at Claire and Ari beaming at each other, even as tired as Claire was, it almost brought tears of happiness to his eyes. This is what he'd always wanted. Who knew it'd take years of making mistakes, biding his time, and ignoring what was right in front of his face until finally stumbling onto perfection. And then marrying her._

* * *

 _They'd worked so hard to get this life, especially in those early days of their relationship. It'd been a lot of getting schedules to align, flying back and forth, and many hours on Skype to keep things from falling apart. It became a ritual to set up their tablets during their respective dinners and pretend they were at the same table, sharing the details of their day. They managed to rack up an impressive amount of miles going back and forth between San Jose and San Diego._

 _In the beginning, she had the more flexible schedule with fewer hours on call, so her flight times heavily outweighed his. They'd hunker down in his house, mostly because they didn't feel like dealing with the possibility of running into someone they knew and having to explain their relationship. He understood and respected Claire's concern about both their reputations so it didn't bother him to be more cautious. And honestly, in those first days, he'd been content to have her all to himself._

 _Yet he preferred the time they spent in her little house with that baby grill on the patio, long rides along the coast, dancing and playing together, and being free and in love. They'd spend warm afternoons napping in the hammock in her backyard or going to the markets to put together a meal they'd make together later that night. They'd even contemplated him moving down there when things turned serious enough to start going down that road._

 _Lim already knew about them, of course, and teased Neil discretely but mercilessly in a good-natured way. It made his and Claire's situation feel almost normal sometimes. Then it didn't take long for Shaun to figure them out. They'd forgotten how perceptive he could be, and when he and Claire both mentioned the same concert within a week of each other, he'd asked point blank if they were dating. Neil dodged as much as he could until Shaun assured him that he'd wouldn't give them away. And he'd kept that promise—except when he teamed up with Lim to poke fun of him and Claire as an experiment in improving his friendly banter with others. 'I told you she was your favorite,' he liked to say._

 _After a year of this, something extraordinary happened. St. Bonaventure asked San Diego Downtown Memorial for a surgeon on loan to pilot a surgical research residency like Claire's in San Jose—a three month posting at minimum. The logical choice had been one of the leads on Claire's program. But one of them had just gone on maternity leave and the other led two other grants that required on-site supervision. The easy choice was to instead send their senior resident: Claire._

 _Less easy was Claire's decision to accept. St. Bonaventure still held a lot of conflicting memories for her. The rejection from Andrews and the board, the competitiveness that mostly hadn't been a factor in her San Diego program, not to mention the ethical ambiguity of dating an attending even if he technically wasn't her boss._

 _So they talked about it, mulled it over, laid out the pros and cons, and played devil's advocate. In the end, she returned to San Jose. And after almost five years of being colleagues, friends and then lovers, they essentially moved in together. To keep the pressure off, they reasoned that it was a temporary fix. Finding an apartment for three months seemed silly, especially if she planned on spending most of her time at Neil's anyway._

 _It turned out to be one of the best three months either could remember._

 _During the day, they saw very little of each other, being on different rotations and schedules. Sometimes, though, they'd get to collaborate, and that didn't feel as strange as it probably should have. The lack of contact made it much easier to avoid any temptation to reveal their intimate relationship._

 _And the arrangement made it much more satisfying to come home to her. Sometimes she'd be finishing up dinner for the two of them. Or he'd wake up to her snuggled up next to him in bed, dead to the world after a long late-night shift. They'd take day trips together and he finally got to introduce her to his parents. They loved her, of course. And Claire insisted on coming with him to his regular visits with his sister. Gabrielle had been wary of the new woman in his life at first, but Claire had a way of winning people over. They'd created enough of a routine that it surprised them both when it came time for her to return to San Diego to finish the last couple months of her residency._

 _That first week apart had been frustrating and lonely for the both of them. There had been some talk of keeping her pilot project going, but the politics of it didn't sound promising. Downtown Memorial might not want a competitor in that particular research field and St. Bonaventure hadn't seemed committed to funding the pilot long-term. That's when they'd danced around their options—him seriously considering the idea of moving down to Southern California to be closer to her._

 _Claire had dismissed the idea—a little too quickly, he'd thought. He had seniority where he was, a shoe-in for chief of surgery soon, maybe even president down the line. It would be foolish to throw that away. On the other hand, Neil thought it foolish not to give that up for the happiness he felt being with her. She'd called him such a sap for saying that, but the smile and tears he saw in her eyes over their video conference told him how much it'd meant to hear that. Knowing what he did about her childhood, it had to be emotional for her to be treated as if she mattered more than anything else._

 _And she did to him._

* * *

 _Neil put out discrete feelers anyway—or so he thought. Even if he didn't act on it, it didn't hurt to know his options. Except soon after, he found himself in Andrews' office, Marcus looking stone-faced with Aoki standing at his shoulder ready to pounce. The power play rather annoyed him. If they had something to say, they needed to just spit it out._

 _"So," Marcus began. "In case you hadn't heard, St. Bonaventure has decided to pass on the San Diego Downtown Memorial pilot extension. The board felt that it's not the right time to find funding in that area. Especially when San Diego has taken the clear lead."_

 _Neil looked at him curiously. "Okay. That's not my department, but good to know, I guess. I'm not going to complain about not fighting another project for funding. Is that what you pulled me out of my rounds to tell me?"_

 _"Actually, no." Marcus steepled his hands in front of him, resting his arms rigidly on the desk. He opened his mouth and then closed it again as if rethinking his line of attack. "Are you happy here, Neil?"_

 _"Uh, yes," he replied carefully. Before he panicked, he told himself there was no way Andrews could know about the meeting he took two weeks ago while visiting Claire. He'd told her he was having lunch with an old friend, which wasn't a lie. He'd just failed to disclose that the topic of conversation was the open department head position at a neighboring hospital to hers. Still, that's not something he'd expect to get back to Marcus._

 _"Good," Marcus said. "With the chief of surgery position coming into play soon, I just wanted to … check in about how things are going." Neil had to restrain himself from rolling his eyes. Andrews and his mind games were tedious, but it signaled him playing at something that Neil probably wasn't going to like. "Sorry, I meant to finish explaining about the former pilot program. Although we won't be extending the pilot, we will be continuing the research. The trials we've run and the data from that are still very valuable to our colleagues, especially given the diverse sample set we have access to in Northern California. What both hospital boards want to do is place a semi-permanent surgical specialist here. They'd continue the research that'll be led from San Diego, but also assist in surgical duties here as necessary. Downtown Memorial foots the bill, we get some of the credit and an extra set of hands."_

 _A picture started to form of what all this meant. Neil tried to control the flutter of anticipation at getting the whole story. And it worried him about why he'd been called in._

 _"So good news? We could certainly use the extra set of hands. Lim too." His tone held his suspicion, yet he tried not to give anything away through that or in his expression. He glanced over at Allegra who had her game face on._

 _"Of course, the ideal person would be Dr. Browne since she led the work here. If she's amenable to moving back—on a semi-permanent basis—it might benefit everyone."_

 _"Again, you called me out of rounds for this? Are you asking my opinion? You know I have the highest regard for Dr. Browne. If you were happy with her performance then it seems like an easy decision for the board."_

 _Marcus stood up and walked the perimeter of his desk to lean against it in front of Neil. Allegra stood her ground, simply watching the two of them._

 _"Neil, I called you out of rounds to tell you a different kind of story. We, in fact, have already vetted the idea of choosing Dr. Browne. We were in the stage of making an offer: I give her a call, send an official offer letter, and we're good. I'm just about to sign the letter that my assistant drafted._

 _That curious feeling turned to dread; Neil knew where this was going._

 _"Everything looks good," Marcus continues. "Except the address Margie pulled from our system is a temporary one from her recent rotation with us. And it looks … familiar."_

 _"Cut the drama, Marcus, and get to the point."_

 _Allegra stepped up and exchanged a strange look with Andrews._

 _"The point, Neil, is that we need to know whether you're sleeping with a resident" She held his gaze until Neil turned away in annoyance.  
_

 _He scoffed, gripping his chair so as not to cross his arms defensively. "I'm not 'sleeping with a resident.' I'm in a relationship with someone I've known for almost five years. Someone who hasn't been my resident since you booted her from our program three years ago." And there it was. That old wound._

 _"Fine. You're in a 'relationship' with a resident." Allegra stared him down, her expression unreadable._

 _"It's not like she's going to be a resident if you bring her back for this position."_

 _Allegra frowned. "That hardly matters when everyone knows that you were her boss at some point."_

 _"But I'm not now. And at this point, she's been gone longer than when I was her attending." Neil argued, now thoroughly agitated._

 _"It looks bad," Allegra countered._

 _"To whom?" Neil threw back, almost shouting. "We were living together, openly, during her entire rotation this year and no one had a clue. You didn't even know until some clerical fluke happened. We are very aware of our reputations and relationships with colleagues and have shown that we know how to be both discrete and professional. Nobody had a problem when I was with Jessica or Audrey."_

 _Allegra crossed her arms, now the defensive one. "Jessica wasn't a doctor under your tutelage and the situation with Dr. Lim, although not quite compliant with protocol, didn't involve fraternization with a subordinate. And your 'relationship' as you call it with Dr. Browne only involved keeping things discrete for three months. You won't be able hide your status for much longer if she moves back here."_

 _"We weren't hiding anything. We've been together for over a year, and none of you had a clue. Well, nobody but Murphy and Lim."_

 _Marcus straightened at that. "Murphy knew?"_

 _"Of course. He and Claire are friends. He promised not to say a word and he didn't. And Lim." Neil sighed. "Audrey's known since the beginning."_

 _"And she's fine with it?" Marcus asked, skeptically._

 _"She's the most fine with it. Annoyingly supportive," Neil added. "Especially when she and Claire are colluding."_

 _Allegra raised an eyebrow at Andrews, a silent question he seemed to understand._

 _Neil took a moment to calm himself. He would do neither himself or Claire any favors by losing his temper. "Look, you do what you need to do, but you'd be fools to let Claire go. Again. And I'm certainly not letting her go. So you need to decide whether you're going to respect and support your doctors or whether you're going to fold because people, God forbid, might gossip about two professionals who have known each other for years having an adult relationship. I'm happy to tell the board that myself." He looked both of his colleagues directly in the eye, dead serious about his commitment to both his job and to Claire._

 _Another glance between Aoki and Andrews sparked his temper. "Are we done here?"_

 _Marcus relaxed, leaning back slightly and sporting a maddening smirk. "Thank you for your candor. Actually, I lied about the letter. I just wanted to see what you'd say."_

 _"What?" Neil bellowed. "Is this some kind of joke?"_

 _"Oh, all the other stuff is true. We'll be calling Claire to offer her the position right after we're done here. The board already approved it."_

 _Allegra dropped her arms and rested them again at her side. "And they were unanimous, even with the information that you and Dr. Browne are … more than friends."_

 _Now Neil was pissed. He hated these mind games they seemed intent on playing with the staff here. And he didn't particularly care for either of them being in his personal business much less having it be a topic of discussion at an official hospital board meeting. "Then what's with the interrogation if you already knew?"_

 _"We wanted to see if you'd deny it. We wanted to know that this is serious between you two and that it won't cause problems. And," he nodded, "I'm satisfied._

 _"How did you find out, then."_

 _"That turned out to be a fluke, as you say. I had lunch with the president of San Diego Downtown Memorial and the chief of surgery happened to stop by our table. We got to talking about Claire and he mentioned that she'd probably be amenable to the move since she was seeing someone at our hospital. He couldn't remember the doctor's name, but knew that person was our representative on the Standards and Practices advisory committee. He said you were a cute couple."_

 _Neil rolled his eyes. "Dr. O'Donnell is such a busybody."_

 _Andrews went back around to sit behind his desk. "If there are any rumblings about the two of you, you'll have plenty of reasonable responses. And if anyone has a problem with it, the board and this leadership are prepared to back you up. But we won't make a big deal of it and I trust you won't either." Glancing at Allegra, Neil noticed a subtle smile breaking through her usually stoic demeanor._

 _Looking back and forth between his two bosses, he didn't quite know how to feel. Anger at the intrusion into his personal life; annoyance at the assumptions about his and Claire's relationship; excitement that they might finally be in a position to take their relationship further just by living in the same city; but also fear that she would choose her stable life down in San Diego over that._

 _"I was serious about the chief of surgery part, though. I'm not going to watch you get scooped up by your old buddy down at University Hospital." Neil stopped dead at that. How Marcus and Allegra seemed to root out these things still mystified him. "Instead, maybe you could help convince Claire to join us up here."_

 _"Well, that's up to her," Neil directed his attention pointedly at both administrators. "We've let her down before. I wouldn't begrudge her being cautious about accepting."_

 _Marcus thought on that, then nodded. "Fair enough. But I hope we can put all of it behind us. This could work out for everyone involved. Make things right. And you can go back to your rounds by the way," Andrews said, dismissing him. "I've got some calls to make."_

 _Neil rose from his chair in a bit of a daze and left. He stopped outside of the closed door wondering what Aoki and Andrews were discussing. The entire situation unnerved him. And now he had to wait and see what would happen on Claire's end._

 _In the grand scheme of things, waiting until later that evening to hear from her wasn't a long time, but the hours had passed entirely too slowly for his comfort. And when she did call him, his anxiety didn't disappear._

 _"Neil, are we sure about this?" she'd asked. "This makes it … real. Like really real."_

 _"I told you from the beginning—I'm not scared. Not of us."_

 _"I could get my own place."_

 _Neil paused, not liking that idea one bit, but not wanting to pressure her. "You could …" he agreed, reluctantly._

 _Claire laughed. "But you'd hate that."_

 _"I would, probably."_

 _"And there's a lot of history with me in that town. At that hospital."_

 _Neil sighed. "I know. I want it to feel right for you. We can work through anything."_

 _They were quiet for a while, not uncomfortable, just both lost in their thoughts. He could hear Claire taking a deep breath across the line._

 _"Okay."_

 _Neil smiled, relief flooding him at Claire's simple acceptance. But he needed her to be certain. "Are you sure?"_

 _"I—" Claire stopped abruptly, reassessing her words, likely trying to figure out how best to reassure him when she was the one he wanted to comfort. "After I got settled here, I stayed away from San Jose for a while because I thought only bad things would eventually happen there. And yet I've never gotten it out of my system. Even when I'm here watching beautiful sunsets on the beach and learning new things at my hospital, I'm drawn back, wondering where I'd be if I had been able to stay. And then reconnecting with you, I can appreciate the good things without dwelling on the regrets and missed opportunities. With this new job, I can have all the things I've built here. But I also get you. And you've been a part of me getting to this point in so many ways. I don't want to run from you, Neil. Not ever."_

 _"I won't give you a reason," he responded without missing a beat. "I promise."_

 _"I know," she said, a warmth to her words that he'd never get tired of. "You have to promise me one more thing, though."_

 _What could be harder than what he'd already vowed to her? "Anything."_

 _"I know you want to move in together, and I want that too, even if I'm scared." He grinned, knowing they could handle anything. "But if we're going to make it work, you've got to do one thing for me."_

 _"I'm all ears."_

 _"You have got to clear more closet space for me."_

 _"Done." He chuckled. He couldn't wait._

 _A week later, Neil had been chosen to take over the chief of surgery position at St. Bonaventure. Two months later, Claire had sublet her house to a junior resident on her team, moved in with him, and found her place back in San Jose._

 _And over time, people figured out that they were more than friends. The nurses thought it weirdly romantic, Park seemed to have guessed long ago, and Reznick was shocked that everyone seemed to have known but her. He and Claire moved on to a new chapter of their lives, back where they'd started in a way._

 _This time, though, Claire was all his._

* * *

 _As Tanya and Neil gathered Ari's things, the little girl chatted into her mother's belly telling stories to her little brother about her day. Claire smoothed Ari's hair back, laughing at her little jokes and cutting in with an occasional question or comment to let her daughter know she was listening. Neil lived for hearing their idle chatter in the background. Lived for the normalcy of it, and soon to add another voice to the cacophony._

 _Neil joined his girls in the foyer of the Kinder Unit playroom holding Ari's bright green backpack. "Okay, Ari, you ready to go home?"_

 _"I'm ready. Mama, you ready?"_

 _Claire rubbed at her back. "I will be. Can you help me up? Pull my arm?" Ari giggled. She considered her mother trying to maneuver herself to a standing position to be the most hilarious thing she'd ever seen. She climbed down from her chair and grabbed her mother's hand._

 _"Come on, Mama, you can do it!"_

 _After a colossal effort from both of them, Claire stood on her feet, rubbing her back again. She groaned a little bit, definitely uncomfortable at this late stage in her pregnancy. "Oh!" she reached for the wall, leaning herself against it as she clutched her stomach._

 _Neil frowned, moving toward her and scanning her for signs of pain. He avoided touching her as she hated that and he didn't want to irritate her and add to the discomfort._

 _"Whoa, Mama!" Ari shouted, eyes wide and pointing. A small pool of water stood at her feet._

 _Claire had been having Braxton-Hicks contractions for the better part of a month. She hadn't mentioned it being any more intense today. He'd learned from her pregnancy with Ari not to hover—after all, she was a doctor and knew what to look for. At least that's what she'd insisted._

 _Looking from the moisture on the floor and then up to his wife's face, a grin slowly spread across his lips._

 _Claire scrunched up her nose at his giddiness. "Oh, don't you start, Melendez."_

 _"Start what?" he asked, innocently. She stared him down, and then took his hand and squeezed it. He nodded in understanding, turning back to his daughter. She looked more curious than scared, and he again wondered at this amazing kid he and Claire had created._

 _"Mijita, I think Adrian liked your stories so much that he decided to come out and play. How would you like to see your little brother outside your mama's belly?" It warmed him to see her eyes brighten, almost leaping with excitement._

 _"Ady, come play!" she pleaded. Claire and Neil laughed at her enthusiasm. Tanya came from around the corner where she'd disappeared to bring Claire some spare scrubs and directing her to the changing room. She put a towel over the wet spot by the chairs and took Ari's backpack from Neil to return to the playroom._

 _Neil dropped to a knee so he could speak directly to his daughter. "Ari, as soon as Mama comes back, I'm going to go take her over to see Dr. Jenny. Will you be okay for here a little while longer? I'll come back when we get Mama settled in."_

 _"She can stay as long as you need, Dr. Melendez," Tanya said, keeping an eye on the handful of other children being supervised in the playroom. Having 24 hour childcare available at St. Bonaventure was a godsend. "And just leave your stuff here. I'll put it by the lockers in the back."_

 _Neil mouthed his thanks to her as Ari tugged on his pant leg. She put her arms out to be picked up, which Neil happily obliged. "I'm a big girl. You help Mama and then we play with Ady later."_

 _"That's right, my love. You're such a brave girl. Daddy loves you so much." He hugged his daughter—soon to officially be his oldest child—close to him. She gave him a sloppy kiss and scrambled to get down._

 _"Love you, Daddy." She hugged his leg and then ran back into the playroom. Tanya chuckled and followed._

 _A few moments later, Claire returned in dry pants looking as uncomfortable as ever. He reached out his hand for her and she took it, shakily but strongly._

 _"Ari's back in action in the playroom. I told her I'd check on her later after we get you settled."_

 _Claire nodded. "Good." She winced and he felt her squeeze at his hand again as a contraction must have rippled through. He almost asked if she was okay, but he knew the answer and she'd be admitted in the next twenty minutes anyway._

 _Neil stared at her, beads of sweat already forming at her brow, pinched expression, full body preparing to bring another one of their children into the world._

 _"I love you, Claire. So much."_

 _Her face softened even under the discomfort. She reached up and kissed him lightly, letting her lips linger for a moment longer than necessary. "Love you too."_

 _"You ready?" Claire let out a breath and nodded. He held her hand tighter and brought it to his lips. "Then, let's do this."_

 _The End_


End file.
